Texas Rangers Shawn Tolleson is doused with water and Powerade by Texas Rangers Elvis Andrus and Rougned Odor after the game against the Los Angeles Angels at Globe Life Park in Arlington. PICTURE: USA TODAY Sports
The Sports Xchange/Arlington
The Texas Rangers guaranteed themselves a post-season spot by beating the Los Angeles Angels on Thursday with third baseman Adrian Beltre driving in three runs for Texas, though just making the playoffs was not enough for the team.
“We’re trying to get this division,” Texas center fielder Delino DeShields said. “It’s a good feeling to be guaranteed in the playoffs, but we’re not done yet.
“We’ve got one more game to get the division and that’s the goal we’ve been working for all year.”
The Rangers (87-72) can do no worse than a wild card and are three games ahead of Houston (84-75) in the American League West with three games left in the regular season.
The Astros begin a three-game series with Arizona on Friday. Texas needs one more win, or an Astros loss, to clinch their sixth division title.
The Angels, last year’s West champion, were eliminated from the division race, but are still alive for a playoff berth. Los Angeles and Minnesota are 83-76, one game behind Houston for the second wild card spot. The New York Yankees (87-72) locked down the other wild card with their victory over Boston earlier on Thursday.
“We have to win out,” Angels center fielder Mike Trout said. “We can’t lose anymore. It’s plain and simple.”
Rangers starter Derek Holland (4-3) worked into the seventh and allowing three runs on Thursday. The left-hander struck out six and gave up three hits in 6-1/3 innings.
“I thought Derek threw the ball very well,” Texas manager Jeff Banister said.
“The ball came out clean. The breaking ball showed up again, the changeup was there and, more than anything else, there was life on the fastball.”
Texas closer Shawn Tolleson picked up his 35th save of the season after a perfect ninth.
“We’ve got to win one more,” Tolleson said. “We’ve got to win the West.”
Los Angeles starter Andrew Heaney (6-4) allowed four runs on five hits and walked five in 4-1/3 innings.
Heaney worked around control issues with two double plays through the first four innings to keep the Rangers scoreless.
Texas broke through in the fifth by taking advantage of Heaney’s fourth and fifth walks to score four times. Beltre had the big blow, a three-run double to chase Heaney.
“I need to bounce that,” Heaney said of the low slider to Beltre. “I’m not surprised. That guy is really freaking good.”
The New York Yankees clinched a playoff spot nine days after the legendary Yogi Berra died, beating the Boston Red Sox 4-1 to record their 10,000th win in franchise history.
The milestone victory carried added significance Thursday for the Yankees who claimed a wild card spot and also avoided a series sweep to the rival Red Sox.
“It is a relief,” said Yankees infielder Alex Rodriguez. “It has been an emotional week for us when you think about Yogi’s funeral and finally clinching.”
New York needs one more win or one more loss by the Houston Astros to get the home field advantage in Tuesday’s Major League Baseball wild card contest. Right fielder Carlos Beltran, first baseman Greg Bird and second baseman Rob Refsnyder hit solo home runs while pitcher CC Sabathia tossed five innings while pitching through cold and rain at times.
The Yankees (87-72) are back in the playoffs for the first time since they won 95 games and their last AL East title.
“We had to overcome lot of obstacles,” Rodriguez said.
“We come together the last eight months as a team. We don’t play for statistics, we play as a team and that has been our DNA.”
Beltran hit his 19th home run in the second off Boston pitcher Rich Hill, and Bird added some breathing room by hitting his 11th homer with one out in the seventh off Jean Machi in front of a crowd of 40,033.
Refsnyder tacked on more runs, hammering a fastball from Heath Hembree over the left-center field fence.
Sabathia allowed one run and six hits in his fifth start since returning from a right knee problem. He put nine of the 22 batters he faced on base, but only allowed an RBI single to center fielder Mookie Betts in the fifth inning.
Sabathia got some much needed help from his defense, which completed double plays on shortstop Xander Bogaerts and right fielder Rusney Castillo in the third and fourth innings.
Sabathia ended his outing by getting first baseman Travis Shaw on a fly ball to deep center field with the bases loaded.
The Red Sox were missing designated hitter David Ortiz, who has been dealing with general soreness, and was given the night off.