Brad Miller’s seventh-inning homer into right field led to a rubber match victory against the Royals on May 12, 3-1, with pitcher Taylor Hearns earning the win for the Rangers, improving his record on the year to 2-2 and pushing Texas to 13-17.
“A moment like that, he hits it off the foul pole, he’s pretty excited,” Chris Woodward, Texas’ skipper, told MLB.com. “He knew how big that run was, and clearly, they scored the next inning.”
Miller’s seventh-inning swat — which hit the rightfield foul pole — was reviewed by umpires and deemed legit, giving the Rangers a 2-0 lead and Brad Miller his fifth home run of the season.
Texas scored their first run of the contest in the first inning when Cole Calhoun knocked Miller in from third on a single. Miller had worked his way on board to lead off the inning with a swinging bunt single.
The Rangers would add their third run of the tilt in the bottom of the eighth after Adolis Garcia tripled to open the frame and then scored on a wild pitch.
The three runs were more than enough support to help Hearns pick up the victory as he tossed five innings, limiting the Royals to one hit while walking three and striking out five.
“We’re just trying to get some momentum and keep it going and fight,” Brad Miller told MLB.com. “They escaped a jam a little there [with the bases loaded], and Taylor kept throwing up zeros, so we needed to help our pitchers out a little bit and get a little breathing room. We’re just trying to be aggressive. Obviously, Adolis tacked on another one, and that was huge. We needed a little spark.”
Texas Rangers used four relievers after Hearns exited — Brock Burke, John King, Matt Bush, and Joe Barlow — who combined to pitch four innings, allowing four hits, one earned run, walking two, and striking out two.
The Rangers now host the Boston Red Sox for a three-game stand starting Friday, May 13, ahead of a three-game homestand with the Angels beginning on Monday, May 16. Tickets for all games can be found here.