With 10 games left in the season, the Texas Rangers are already in playoff mode
The MLB postseason doesn’t officially start till Oct. 3, but Rangers Manager Bruce Bochy said his team’s been in playoff mode since the beginning of September.
“You want them to feel like that, how critical every game is,” Bochy said.
After beating the Boston Red Sox 15-5 at Globe Field on Wednesday afternoon, the Rangers have 10 games left. They are are neck-and-neck with both the Houston Astros and Seattle Mariners for either the American League West pennant or the last wildcard spot.
Houston, which beat Baltimore 2-1 on Wednesday, leads the West with an 85-68 record. The Rangers are 84-68.
Seven of the Rangers last 10 games are against Seattle (83-68 before Wednesday’s game against Oakland) with a three-game series beginning Friday at Globe Life Field. The Rangers, Astros and Mariners are also battling Toronto (84-67 entering Wednesday’s game against the Yankees) for two American League wild card spots.
“It’s a heck of a race. It’s exciting,” Bochy said.
After getting into a 4-0 hole early in Wednesday’s game against the Boston Red Sox, the Rangers’ bats came to life with a six-run second inning including back-to-back home runs from Jonah Heim and Mitch Garver, the first time the Rangers have hit back-to-back home runs since the All Star break.
It didn’t stop there.
The team hit four home runs and pummeled the Red Sox. It was the sixth time this season the Rangers have scored 15 or more runs in a game, a feat the team hadn’t achieved since 1998.
The bullpen, which has been a weak spot for the Rangers of late, was able to shut down the Red Sox with former starter Martin Pérez and reliever Jonathan Hernández combining for 6 and 2/3 scoreless innings.
Bochy had high praise for Pérez for stopping the Red Sox momentum in the 3rd inning.
“He’s done a tremendous job since he’s gone to the bullpen, and he’s picked us up so many times,” Bochy said, adding Pérez may be moved back to the starting rotation in the near future.
The Rangers have a 5-1 record against the Mariners in 2023, and have won eight of their last 11 games against Seattle dating back to the 2022 season.
After this weekend’s homestand, the Rangers travel to Anaheim for a three-game set against the Angels before finishing the season with four games in Seattle.
The Angels have already been eliminated from the playoffs with Japanese sensation Shohei Ohtani going so far as to clean out his locker after season-ending injuries.
The Rangers must win two games against the Mariners to clinch the season series and secure a tie-break should the two clubs have matching records at the end of the year.
The Seattle series will give the Rangers an opportunity to put more space between them and their AL West rivals as the two teams battle for a place in the postseason, said catcher Jonah Heim.
“This is why you play the game, getting to play meaningful games at the end of the year and make the playoffs,” he said.
