ARLINGTON, Texas — The Texas Rangers are finally starting to stack wins, and Wednesday night’s wild finish at Globe Life Field may have been their biggest step forward yet.
Danny Jansen ripped a walk-off RBI single down the left-field line in the bottom of the ninth inning as Texas stormed back for a dramatic 6-5 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks, securing the club’s first walk-off win of the season and its second straight series triumph.
The Rangers improved to 21-22 and capped a successful 4-2 homestand despite losing the opener in both series against Chicago and Arizona. Texas has now won four of its last five games heading into a nine-game road trip that begins Friday in Houston.
Arizona appeared poised to steal the finale after erupting for three runs in the top of the ninth against Jacob Latz, turning a 3-2 deficit into a brief 5-3 advantage. But the Rangers answered immediately against Arizona closer Paul Sewald, who entered the night perfect in save chances this season.
Jake Burger sparked the comeback with a game-tying RBI single before Jansen delivered the decisive hit moments later, scoring Ezequiel Duran from second and sending the crowd into celebration.
Jansen’s winner marked the fifth walk-off plate appearance of his career and continued his knack for late-game production this season.
Burger carried the Texas offense throughout the night. The first baseman finished 2-for-4 with four RBIs, matching a career high. His biggest swing came in the fifth inning when he launched a three-run homer the opposite way to break a scoreless tie.
Burger later added the tying hit in the ninth, giving him seven home runs this season — tied with Corey Seager for the team lead — while extending his club-best RBI total to 27.
After sitting out both weekend games against the Cubs, Burger responded with a huge series against Arizona, going 5-for-10 with six RBIs over the three games.
Kumar Rocker delivered one of his sharpest outings of the year, though he did not factor into the decision. The right-hander tossed five scoreless innings, allowing just three hits while striking out three.
Rocker worked around early trouble in the first inning and showed improved command after struggling with first-inning runs in recent starts. He threw a season-high-tying 97 pitches and received help from Jansen, who cut down Ryan Waldschmidt attempting to steal in the third inning.
Arizona starter Ryne Nelson was equally effective for much of the evening. Nelson carried a shutout into the fifth and struck out a season-high eight batters across seven innings without issuing a walk.
The Diamondbacks rallied late behind key hits from Nolan Arenado and Ildemaro Vargas. Arenado tied the game with an RBI double in the ninth before Vargas followed with a two-run single that briefly gave Arizona the lead.
Arenado continued his recent hot streak with a 2-for-4 night that included two doubles and two RBIs. Over his last 20 games, he has raised his batting average from .205 to .274.
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. also contributed an RBI double for Arizona, snapping an 0-for-18 slump.
Texas received additional offensive support from Josh Jung and Evan Carter, who each recorded two hits. Jung doubled for the 13th time this season, while Carter collected his third multi-hit game of the year.
The game was played with the Globe Life Field roof open for the second consecutive night as temperatures reached 89 degrees, tying the warmest roof-open game in stadium history with fans in attendance.
