Rangers at Mariners
The Seattle Mariners have done a great job of bottling up the vaunted offense of the Texas Rangers. Yet, despite two superb pitching performances, the host Mariners have managed only a split as they prepare for the rubber game of the series Wednesday afternoon. The Rangers were economical in Tuesday's 3-1 victory, squeezing all their runs into one inning and collecting only four hits. The loss denied Seattle its bid for a season-high five-game winning streak.
While Texas has been struggling at the plate, there has been no issue at the back of its bullpen. Closer Joe Nathan notched his 10th save with a perfect ninth inning Tuesday. Since blowing a save and taking the loss in a 4-3 defeat to the Mariners on April 11, Nathan has converted all eight save opportunities and has allowed only two runs in his last 15 appearances.
TV: 3:40 p.m. ET, FSH, ROOT
PITCHING MATCHUP: Rangers RH Scott Feldman (0-1, 3.00 ERA) vs. Mariners RH Kevin Millwood (2-4, 4.17 ERA)
Feldman will make his second straight spot start, this time in place of an injured Neftali Feliz, who could miss substantial time with an elbow injury. Feldman was a two-out error away from getting through five scoreless innings against Kansas City last time out after opening the season with six relief appearances. He has thrived as a starter in the past, winning 17 games with the Rangers in 2009.
Millwood has fashioned a remarkable turnaround in winning his last two starts. A 16-game loser in 2010 with Baltimore, he was winless and had lost four consecutive starts before holding the Yankees to one run on three hits in seven innings. The 37-year-old Millwood followed that up by tossing his first shutout since 2003, blanking the Colorado Rockies with a two-hit masterpiece in his last outing.
WALK-OFFS:
1. Texas' home run streak ended at 15 games Tuesday. It was the longest in the majors and tied for fourth-best in franchise history.
2. Mariners OF Ichiro Suzuki had a pair of hits Tuesday to extend his hitting streak to five games. It gave him 292 career hits against the Rangers, passing George Brett for the most against them since the franchise moved to Texas.
3. Rangers SS Elvis Andrus had a two-run triple Tuesday. It was his third of the season, matching his total from each of the previous two seasons.