The Texas Rangers lost to the Oakland Athletics on Wednesday, 12-5, losing all three games of the series and conceding the American League West division title to the A's.
The A's took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning, on a Brandon Moss double to right field. The Rangers would roar back, however, knocking starting pitcher A.J. Griffin from the game in the top of the third inning after taking a 5-1 lead.
Rangers starting pitcher Ryan Dempster was unable to hold the lead, allowing two runs in the bottom of the fourth inning before being pulled in favor of Derek Holland. The lefty would get two quick outs before allowing a game-tying two-run double to Coco Crisp.
The inning appeared over when Yoenis Cespedes popped up to center field, but Josh Hamilton dropped the fly ball and allowed two more runs to score. The A's scored six runs in the fourth inning to take a 7-5 lead.
The Rangers were unable to take advantage of having two runners in scoring position with no outs in the seventh inning, with David Murphy and Mike Napoli both striking out. Hamilton was 1-for-5 in the game with three strikeouts, with Michael Young going 1-for-5 with a RBI, while stranding four.
The A's would add on four runs in the eighth inning, fueled by Ian Kinsler's one-out error. The Rangers committed three errors in the game.
The Texas Rangers entered the final series of the season needing just one win against Oakland to win the division, yet they were swept by the A's and now must play in the A.L. wild card playoff. They'll face either the New York Yankees or the Baltimore Orioles, with first pitch set for 7:37 p.m. CT.