ARLINGTON, Texas — The Texas Rangers broke through offensively Tuesday night and rode a dominant performance from MacKenzie Gore to a 7-4 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks at Globe Life Field, evening the three-game series at one game apiece.
Texas piled up a season-high 11 hits while matching its home high with seven runs, improving to 10-10 at Globe Life Field this season. The Rangers have now won three of their last four games.
Joc Pederson wasted no time igniting the offense, crushing a leadoff home run in the first inning for his third homer of the season. The blast marked the veteran slugger’s 27th career leadoff homer and gave Texas an early spark.
The Rangers created separation in the fifth inning, erupting for four runs behind five hits. Ezequiel Duran and Jake Burger each delivered RBI singles during the rally as Texas matched its highest-scoring inning of the year.
Burger turned in one of his best performances of the season, finishing 3-for-3 with two RBI and a walk while reaching base four times. He now leads the Rangers with 23 RBI on the season.
Duran continued his strong start to the year by going 2-for-3 with a walk and a solo homer in the fourth inning that stayed just inside the right-field foul pole. Brandon Nimmo added three hits, including a triple, in his first game batting second this season.
While the offense delivered, Gore controlled the game on the mound.
The left-hander authored the longest outing by a Rangers starter this year, working a career-high eight innings while allowing just one run on three hits. Gore struck out five and needed only 95 pitches to navigate eight dominant frames after Texas leaned heavily on its bullpen in Monday’s opener.
Arizona’s only damage against Gore came on a solo homer from Ildemaro Vargas in the second inning. The Diamondbacks mounted a late rally with three runs in the ninth, but Texas closed the door to secure the 7-4 win.
Diamondbacks starter Zac Gallen struggled throughout the night, surrendering seven earned runs over 4 2/3 innings while allowing two home runs. Vargas provided a bright spot for Arizona with a homer and two RBI.
The Rangers will look to claim the series in Wednesday’s finale as they continue a six-game homestand in Arlington.
