Game Preview: Rangers At Athletics
(AP) - As the Texas Rangers continue to surge, the Oakland Athletics again find themselves headed in the wrong direction.
The visiting Rangers can win for the 16th time in 20 games by handing the A's a fifth straight defeat Wednesday night.
Nick Martinez allowed one of Oakland's five hits over six scoreless innings and Mitch Moreland homered to help Texas (31-27) to a 2-1 series-opening victory Tuesday. The Rangers were 9 1/2 games back of first-place Houston in the AL West on May 19 but have moved within two of the reeling Astros.
"It's just a testament to who they are," manager Jeff Banister said. "They love playing together and want to get a win. It's 1 through 25."
Winners of 10 of 12 away from home, the Rangers lead the majors with a 20-12 road record.
"We're not playing different," Martinez said. "We're coming to the ballpark going through our same routine as we go in at home. I think it's just worked out that way."
Moreland is batting .390 with five home runs and 11 RBIs during a 15-game road hitting streak.
"I'm just trying to keep it simple," said Moreland, who has homered in two straight at Oakland. Prince Fielder is batting an AL-leading .354, and .462 with five RBIs in his last seven games against the A's.
Yovani Gallardo (5-6, 3.54 ERA) went 2-5 with a 4.19 ERA in his first seven starts as a Ranger, but is 3-1 with a 2.70 ERA in his last five. He's allowed one earned run and seven hits while lasting six innings in each of his last two. The run the right-hander yielded during Thursday's 2-1, 11-inning victory over the Chicago White Sox was unearned.
Gallardo posted a 5.91 ERA while dropping two straight to Texas, both part of his rough stretch to open the season. Ben Zobrist and Stephen Vogt are a combined 5 for 9 and each has a double and a home run off Gallardo. Vogt's second hit in 23 at-bats over his last seven games Tuesday drove home Zobrist, 3 for 31 in his past 10.
The A's (23-37) have totaled nine runs and batted .194 with runners in scoring position during their fifth losing streak of at least four games.
"We want to nip this on the backside as soon as we can and get back on track," Vogt said.
Jesse Hahn (3-5, 3.51), who's posted a 1.64 ERA while winning two of his last three starts, gave up a run over seven innings of a 7-5 victory at Detroit on Thursday. The right-hander opened his season by allowing three runs and seven hits while hitting two batters in six innings of a 3-1 home defeat to Texas on April 7.
Hahn has never faced Kyle Blanks, who could be activated from the disabled list Wednesday to reinforce a Rangers roster that continues to play well despite injuries to Adrian Beltre and Josh Hamilton. Blanks was batting .322 with three homers in 15 games when he landed on the DL on May 22 to undergo a pilonidal cyst procedure.
"(Wednesday) is a realistic possibility," Banister told MLB's official website. "It depends on how he responds through the day. We'll see how he feels after his workout."
Updated June 10, 2015
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