|
 The Texas Rangers right-hander retired the last 13 hitters he
faced in his strongest outing of the season and Texas took two of
three games from the New York Yankees with a 3-2 victory on
Wednesday night.
Lewis (7-8) gave up solo home runs in the first and third innings
but otherwise was unscathed, setting down 17 of the last 19 batters
he faced.
He gave up two runs, four hits and two walks with four strikeouts in
seven innings for Texas (43-65), which won its first series in more
than a month.
Right-handed reliever Neftali Feliz pitched a perfect ninth inning
for his third save in three opportunities this season.
"As the weeks have transitioned into the second half, every time I
take the mound I feel like I'm getting stronger," said Lewis, who
will be 35 on Saturday and made his 19th start of the season. "I
think it was definitely an adjustment period getting used to a
prosthetic hip."
A night after the teams combined to score 23 runs, pitching took
over.
The Rangers scored all of their runs in the first inning. Shortstop
Elvis Andrus had a run-scoring double followed by RBI base hits from
third baseman Adrian Beltre and center fielder Leonys Martin.
Andrus' double drove in designated hitter Shin-Soo Choo, who singled
to lead off, and Beltre and Martin followed with run-scoring base
hits.
Beltre, who has had a hit, run and RBI in four consecutive games,
and left fielder Jim Adduci both went 2-for-4.
Hiroki Kuroda (7-7) took the loss for New York (55-52), which
dropped 5 1/2 games behind first-place Baltimore in the American
League East. He struck out three and gave up three runs, nine hits
and a walk in seven innings.
"Hiro did a pretty good job," said Yankees manager Joe Girardi,
whose team has lost four of its last five games. "He had a rough
first inning and then shut them down. Gave us the distance we
needed."
Yankees left fielder Brett Gardner hit his second leadoff home run
in as many days and the fifth of his career. It was also his fourth
home run of the series.
Gardner was 1-for-4 with strikeouts in two of his last three at-bats
and went 8-for-14 in the series.
Center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury had a home run in the third inning,
representing the only other glitch on Lewis' line.
[to top of second column] |
"I thought we really put some good at-bats on him early on and that was
about it," Girardi said of Lewis. "I thought we hit some balls pretty
good but didn't have much to show for it."
Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter, honored before the game in his last
appearance in Arlington, went 0-for-4. Designated hitter Carlos Beltran
was 2-for-4.
Lewis, who had lost his past three decisions, has given up three earned
runs or fewer in four of his last five starts. In that one, he gave up a
club-record 13 runs to the LA Angels.
He said Wednesday's start in front of a soldout stadium gave him some
flashbacks of his ALCS-clinching victory in Game 6 against the Yankees
in 2010.
"I was expecting too much of myself," Lewis said of his expectations
early in the season. "I don't have any pain anymore and it's a blessing.
I feel fortunate to come back from it."
NOTES: Texas C Geovany Soto, on the 15-day disabled list due to a right
groin strain, expects to begin a rehab stint with Triple-A Round Rock on
Friday, with a return to the Rangers preliminarily set for Aug. 8. ...
The Rangers honored Yankees SS Derek Jeter in a pregame ceremony and
presented him with cowboy boots and a $10,000 check to his foundation.
Former President George W. Bush presented Jeter with a signed picture
showing the two before the 2001 World Series. ... Texas LHP Derek
Holland, recovering from knee surgery, pitched two scoreless innings in
his first rehab start for Double-A Frisco. He gave up no hits and two
walks while striking out four in 33 pitches.
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
