Leiter allowed a first inning run, on a two out Bryan Reynolds double followed by a Marcell Ozuna single, but those were the only two hits he allowed through four innings. He needed just 20 pitches to get through the first nine batters of the game.
Once the Pirates turned the lineup over, though, the at bats started getting longer and longer. Leiter needed 16 pitches to get the final two outs of the third, including an 11 pitch at bat to end the inning when he struck out Brandon Lowe. In the fourth, he needed 19 pitches, including a nine pitch at bat against Bryan Reynolds and a seven pitch walk to Ryan O’Hearn.
Still, things seemed to be going fine, and Leiter seemed to be in position to go six, maybe seven innings.
The Pirates went single-K-walk (on 8 pitches)-K to start the fifth, and retiring Brandon Lowe for the third out would preserve the Rangers’ 2-1 lead.
But no. Lowe singled home a run. Then Bryan Reynolds singled to right, scoring a run, and Brandon Nimmo made a terrible throw back into the infield that Leiter fell and twisted his ankle trying to back up, allowing Lowe to score all the way from first.
Leiter looked like he might be seriously injured on the play, which would have made things catastrophic. Somehow, though, he was well enough to finish the inning, retiring Ozuna on a fly out.
Final line for Leiter was five innings, four runs, three earned, five Ks, 15 whiffs, two walks. He now has a 4.97 ERA on the year.
The surprisingly effective Tyler Alexander gave the Rangers two innings of scoreless relief, followed by a shutout inning from Gavin Collyer. When the Rangers tied the score in the bottom of the eighth, Skip Schumaker turned to Cole Winn to keep the game tied.
Things didn’t work out. A weakly hit single and a hard hit single put runners on the corners with no one out. A strikeout was followed by a weak chopper to third base that Josh Jung made a less than great throw home on, and it was now 5-4 with two on and one out. Jalen Beeks was brought in to face Oneil Cruz, and Cruz crushed a middle-middle cutter that bounced off the top of the right field foul pole.
Offensively, the Rangers got a two run home run by Josh Jung in the bottom of the second, Joc Pederson having walked to lead off the inning, then did a whole bunch of nothing until the eighth inning, when Andrew McCutchen led off with a pinch hit single, Brandon Nimmo doubled, and then Jake Burger singled them home to tie the game at four.
That was exciting, at least, though the excitement was short-lived.
It was a frustrating game. And put the Rangers back at .500, and a half-game back in the A.L. West behind Oakland, even though those shit-ass A’s lost.
Jack Leiter hit 98.5 mph with his fastball, averaging 96.9 mph. Tyler Alexander hit 92.0 mph with his fastball. Gavin Collyer hit 97.5 mph with his fastball. Cole Winn’s fastball topped out at 96.3 mph. Jalen Beeks reached 94.7 mph with his fastball.
Brandon Nimmo had a 108.3 mph double and a 102.9 mph ground out. Evan Carter had a 101.9 mph single.
Texas can still take the series on Thursday. Let’s get that rubber game win.