Texas Rangers beat San Diego Padres 2-1 in series opener – MLB Update
Texas Rangers extended their winning streak to four games as they edged San Diego Padres 2-1 at Petco Park in San Diego, California on Monday, June 18 in the opening game of their three match series of the 2012 Major League Baseball regular season.
Credit must be given to Rangers’ starting pitcher Matt Harrison to win for the fifth straight time this season. The left hander gave up just one run and six hits in six solid innings.
Harrison has an incredible 9-3 win loss record and he is tied with Ivan Nova and C.C. Sabathia of New York Yankees at the top of American League lead in victories.
His counterpart from San Diego, Jason Marquis took the loss despite putting up a dominant performance.
"After the first inning Marquis was outstanding," Harrison said. "Striking out 10 guys, he made his pitches. It was definitely a battle to keep the game where it was because he was on top of his game after the first."
The starter showed great control over his fastballs and the curveballs. Marquis allowed just two runs and five hits in seven effective innings to earn praise from the Rangers. Striking out ten and walking three, he looked on top of his game play.
"After the first inning I thought we'd have a chance to do something with him," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "But he settled down and made his pitches. He really settled in. I didn't think he'd be around for the seventh inning, but he was. I tip
my hat to him. Good pitching duel out there tonight."
David Murphy singled to centre in the first inning to give his side a match winning 2-0 lead.
With their sensational win against San Diego, the Rangers have now improved their record to 41-27, which puts them five games ahead of second placed Los Angeles Angels on the American League West standings.
The game was played on an extremely competitive note with both teams putting in their 100 percent to take control of the situation but it was Texas who handled the pressure better than their rivals to clinch a thrilling victory.
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