ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) – Delino DeShields‘ single led to a key error by Chris Davis during his first game in right field in almost three years, and the Texas Rangers beat the banged-up Baltimore Orioles 4-3 on Thursday night.
Davis volunteered to play right a day after three Baltimore teammates exited a 12-inning loss to the Rangers because of injuries. Then the Orioles lost another player when left fielder Dwight Smith Jr. crashed into the wall just as he caught a fly ball by Rougned Odor not long after a 13-minute rain delay.
Smith tried to stay in the game, grounding out for the final out of the fifth after his inning-ending catch in the fourth. He tried to play defense in the bottom of the fifth, but was unable to continue before the inning started.
The injury to Smith forced Keon Broxton, the only healthy player on the Orioles bench, into the game as the center fielder while Stevie Wilkerson moved to left.
Wilkerson was recalled from Triple-A Norfolk earlier in the day after right fielder DJ Stewart went on the 10-day injured list. Stewart sprained his right ankle after getting tangled with Hanser Alberto as they pursued a foul pop in the sixth inning of the 2-1 loss.
Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said catcher Pedro Severino and infielder Jonathan Villar, the other players forced from Wednesday’s game with injuries, were available, and he used Villar as a pinch-runner in the ninth. Severino took a foul ball off his mask while Villar left with a sore thumb.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa scored the tiebreaking run from first when DeShields’ rolling single to right skipped past Davis’ glove in the fifth. DeShields ended up on third and scored what ended up being the decisive run on Danny Santana‘s sacrifice fly.
Ariel Jurado (3-2) gave up eight hits and three runs in six innings with six strikeouts. Jesse Chavez extended the longest active scoreless streak in the majors to 20 2/3 innings with a perfect seventh, and Chris Martin struck out the side in the eighth.
Shawn Kelley, a night after allowing a tying homer in the ninth inning, pitched around a walk for his seventh save as the Rangers improved to 6-0 in rubber games at home and matched their season best at four games over .500 (32-28).
David Hess (1-8) gave up his major league-leading 20th home run, a tying solo shot by Hunter Pence , his 12th, in the second inning. The right-hander set a career worst with his eighth consecutive loss, after losing seven straight as a rookie last year. Hess’ career record dropped to 4-18 after he allowed eight hits and four runs – three earned – in six innings.
Trey Mancini had three hits, including his 13th homer on a solo shot in the first. Wilkerson had an RBI single in the fifth, and Davis added a run-scoring double in the sixth. Alberto had two hits, giving him eight in the three-game series.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Rangers: DH-OF Shin-Soo Choo sat out a day after getting hit by a pitch on his left wrist, which set up the game-winning hit in the 12th inning. Texas manager Chris Woodward said he didn’t want Choo to swing a bat Thursday and was considering sitting him again Friday. … Kiner-Falefa left after seven innings because of a jammed right middle finger.
UP NEXT
Orioles: RHP Gabriel Ynoa (0-2, 5.06 ERA) is set for his third straight start in the opener of a three-game series at Houston on Friday night. Ynoa’s first nine appearances of the season were out of the bullpen. He has allowed 10 hits and six runs – four earned – in nine innings as a starter.
Rangers: RHP Lance Lynn (7-4, 4.50) is set for Friday night’s opener of a four-game, three-day series against Oakland. Lynn allowed a season-high eight runs in his only career appearance against the A’s, an 11-5 loss on April 23.
