Arlington, TX (Sports Network) – Michael Young finished 4-for-4 with three runs scored and Taylor Teagarden hit a two-run homer, as the Texas Rangers defeated the Oakland Athletics, 7-4, in the rubber match of a three-game series.
Vladimir Guerrero drove in two runs for the Rangers, who have won five of their last seven games and increased their lead atop the AL West to 8 1/2 games over the A’s.
Rajai Davis posted two hits, an RBI and a run scored for Oakland, which entered this series as winners in four of its previous five and will now travel to Chicago for a weekend series against the White Sox.
Earlier Thursday, the Rangers acquired infielder Jorge Cantu and cash considerations from the Florida Marlins in exchange for a pair of pitching prospects. After Oakland opened the scoring in the first inning on a sacrifice fly by Kurt Suzuki, the Rangers moved ahead 2-1 in the home portion of the frame. Young's one-out single preceded a double by Josh Hamilton. A grounder by Guerrero brought home Young, and an RBI base hit to right field off the bat of Nelson Cruz moved the Rangers in front. Guerrero's RBI single in the third, which scored Young, made it 3-1. Texas pushed its cushion to three in the fifth. Young led off with a double, and Hamilton singled to put runners on the corners. When Guerrero grounded into a 6-4-3 double play, Young crossed the plate. In the top of the sixth, Oakland cut its deficit to 4-3 with a pair of runs. Kevin Kouzmanoff doubled leading off and headed for third on a one-out single by Mark Ellis. Landon Powell followed and grounded into a fielder's choice, scoring Kouzmanoff on the play. Later in the frame, a double by Cliff Pennington plated Powell. Texas, though, essentially put the game away with three runs in the home half of the sixth. Murphy led off with his fifth home run of the year, and Joaquin Arias followed with a base hit. With one out, Teagarden belted a fastball over the wall in right field to give the hosts a 7-3 advantage. Darren O'Day pitched two consecutive perfect innings, and Frank Francisco came on for the ninth. Francisco yielded a one-out single to Coco Crisp, who snagged second on defensive indifference and then scored on a single by Davis. Suzuki, though, grounded into a game-ending double play. Game Notes The Rangers lead the season series, 5-4...Mazzaro lost for the second time on the road this season (4-2)...Texas posted 14 hits compared to 10 for Oakland...Davis stole two bases and has 32 swipes this season...The A's were 3-for-10 with runners in scoring position...Hamilton was 3-for-4.