Rangers 7, Athletics 2
Ron Washington switched up the lineup in hopes of igniting the Texas Rangers' offense. And his changes did just that.
Michael Young proved he can be productive in the cleanup role, and Adrian Beltre came through in the six-hole, as Texas cruised to a 7-2 victory over Oakland on Tuesday.
Rangers starter Colby Lewis (3-4) turned in quite an outing, going 7 1/3 innings, allowing one run on five hits with a walk and no strikeouts. Even after a 59-minute rain delay, Lewis came back out to throw another 2 1/3 innings.
Texas’ offense provided Lewis with plenty of support. The Rangers took a 2-0 lead in the fourth, when Mike Napoli drew a bases-loaded walk and Craig Gentry had an RBI single.
In the fifth, Beltre belted a two-run shot and Napoli added an RBI double for a 5-0 lead.
The A’s avoided a shutout when Cliff Pennington went deep in the sixth.
But the game was never in doubt, especially after Young – batting cleanup for the first time in his career – cushioned the Rangers’ lead with a two-run triple in the seventh. He finished 3-for-4.
A’s starter Brett Anderson (2-3) had his shortest outing of the season, lasting 4 2/3 innings. He allowed four runs on six hits with four walks and five strikeouts.