ARLINGTON, Texas — The Texas Rangers refused to let another late deficit turn into a loss.
Ezequiel Duran delivered a walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth inning Saturday afternoon as the Rangers stormed back from two runs down to defeat the Kansas City Royals 7-6 at Globe Life Field.
The dramatic finish capped a back-and-forth contest and gave Texas its second walk-off victory of the season. The Rangers improved to 27-31 and moved within four games of the .500 mark after winning for the third time in their last five contests.
Trailing 6-4 entering the ninth, Texas began its comeback when Joc Pederson launched a solo homer just over the right-field wall. The blast was Pederson’s eighth of the season and his fifth in as many games, matching the best five-game home run stretch of his career.
Jake Burger followed later in the inning with a game-tying RBI single before Duran lined the game-winning hit, sending the Rangers pouring out of the dugout in celebration.
Duran continued his recent hot streak, collecting the first walk-off hit of his major league career. Since mid-May, the versatile infielder has been one of Texas’ most productive hitters, providing a steady spark to the offense.
While the Rangers celebrated late, much of the afternoon belonged to starter Kumar Rocker.
The rookie right-hander turned in six scoreless innings, allowing three hits while working around three walks. Rocker struck out two and escaped his biggest challenge in the third inning, inducing a groundout from Salvador Perez with the bases loaded to preserve the shutout.
Although he received a no-decision, Rocker continued an impressive run of form. He has allowed just four earned runs over his last four appearances and lowered his season ERA to 3.54.
Texas grabbed an early lead when Josh Jung crushed the first pitch he saw from Royals starter Seth Lugo into the left-field seats in the opening inning. Jung finished 3-for-5, recording his seventh three-hit game of the season and raising his batting average to .312.
Burger also collected three hits for Texas, while Nicky Lopez added two hits and an RBI against his former organization. Danny Jansen contributed two RBIs, including a run-scoring double in the eighth inning that kept the Rangers within striking distance.
Kansas City appeared poised to snap its recent struggles after rallying from Rocker’s dominant outing.
The Royals broke through with a four-run seventh inning, highlighted by RBI hits from Bobby Witt Jr., Maikel Garcia and Vinnie Pasquantino. Carter Jensen added an RBI single in the inning before blasting a two-run homer in the eighth to extend Kansas City’s lead to 6-4.
Pasquantino continued his strong series, reaching base repeatedly and delivering the go-ahead double during the seventh-inning surge.
Garcia’s afternoon ended prematurely after suffering a right hamstring strain later in the inning.
Lugo deserved a better fate for Kansas City, allowing only one earned run across six innings while striking out six. The veteran right-hander left with the game tied and recorded his eighth quality start of the season.
The Royals’ bullpen, however, could not secure the victory.
Kansas City dropped its fifth straight game and has now lost 15 of its last 18 contests. The club also suffered its fifth walk-off defeat of the season, all coming away from home.
Peyton Gray earned his first major league victory after pitching a scoreless ninth inning for Texas.
The Rangers will look to complete the series sweep Sunday afternoon at Globe Life Field.
