No closing this game as Rangers beat Dbacks after frantic 9th inning and Jansen's walk-off hit
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Danny Jansen chuckled after saying he didn't really want to have to catch another inning in what had already been an active game behind the plate. Jansen didn't have to after he delivered the walk-off hit that gave the Texas Rangers a 6-5 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday night, when the closers for both teams gave up three runs in a frantic ninth inning. “I feel like the game had everything.
Like passed balls, a couple of wild pitches, I mean, stolen bases, threw somebody out ,” said Jansen, who also blocked a few pitches with runners on base. “A bit of everything, it was kind of a wild one. ...
Definitely a crazy finish. ” The Rangers had just tied the game and chased Paul Sewald (0-4), who had converted his first nine save chances , when No. 9 batter Jansen grounded a RBI single down the line into the left-field corner on the only pitch thrown by Juan Morillo.
That came after a frustrating top of the ninth for the Rangers, when Jacob Latz — their main closer since halfway through a stretch of 10 consecutive scoreless outings — failed to retire any of the four batters he faced. He was gone after Nolan Arenado had an RBI double and Ildemaro Vargas lined a two-run single into left for a 5-3 lead. “Latz has been so good this year.
He has given up next to no runs," manager Skip Schumaker said. “I pitched him two innings, day off, then back-to-back, and then running him out there, maybe not fair to him quite honestly. ” But when it was over, Latz was all smiles like every one else after the Rangers had clinched back-to-back-series wins for the first time since their first two series of the season.