Rangers at Padres
Although the Texas Rangers were able to avoid tying a dubious major-league record Sunday, it did nothing to fix their issues with winning away from home. The American League cellar-dwelling Rangers kick off the final leg of their eight-game road trip Monday, when they visit the San Diego Padres for the first of two games.
Texas entered Sunday's rubber match with Seattle having struck out at least 10 times in seven straight games - an AL record - and while it was able to avoid matching the major-league mark by fanning only six times, the team surrendered four runs after the sixth inning to fall to 5-11 on the road. "Is it frustrating? Yes. Is it problematic? Absolutely. We can look at a couple different things, too," Rangers manager Jeff Banister told reporters. "Once you get a lead, somebody's got to come in and put a foot down and record some outs." San Diego got an extra day to fret about its own recent woes thanks to a rainout of its series finale against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday and enters the opener against Texas having dropped four in a row at home. The Padres have been outscored 32-9 during their losing streak and are only one game away from falling into a tie with National League-worst San Francisco.
TV: 10:10 p.m. ET, FSN Southwest (Texas), FSN San Diego
PITCHING MATCHUP: Rangers RH Nick Martinez (0-1, 4.91 ERA) vs. Padres RH Trevor Cahill (2-2, 3.60)
After opening his season with two quality starts to end April, Martinez was tagged for seven runs (six earned) and nine hits - including three homers - while failing to record a strikeout over 5 1/3 innings in Wednesday's loss at Houston. While his 1.20 WHIP is significantly lower than his previous career-low mark of 1.45, the Miami native already has surrendered five homers in only 18 1/3 frames of work. Erick Aybar is 3-for-19 with a homer versus Martinez, who is 2-0 with a 4.88 ERA in six interleague games (five starts).
Cahill claimed his second victory in as many decisions with his finest performance of the season Tuesday against Colorado, permitting one unearned run and three hits with no walks across six innings. While the 29-year-old hasn't fared particularly well on the road (0-2, 5.82 ERA), he is 2-0 with a 0.69 ERA at Petco Park in 2017, allowing no more than one run or three hits in either home outing. Cahill, who was pushed back a day due to the rainout, is 9-4 with a 2.83 ERA in 16 career starts against the Rangers.
WALK-OFFS
1. Texas has won five of its last six games at Petco Park.
2. After belting all six of his homers this season during a nine-game stretch from April 15-24, San Diego C Austin Hedges has managed only one extra-base hit (a double) over his last 10 contests.
3. The Rangers' 81-53 record in interleague play since 2010 is the second-best mark in the majors over that time.