Texas Rangers lose game in 10th as Darren Oliver allows a run
Things were looking good for the Texas Rangers on May 2, 2011 when they took on the Oakland Athletics in their last series encounter. With a lead in the fifth inning, the situation looked to be in the club’s favour.
That unfortunately changed as the hosts fought back valiantly to put the Texans on the losing track with a 5–4 result. The loss came in the tenth innings as Darren Oliver failed to close the game cleanly.
The A’s were playing at their home stadium, overstock.com coliseum, and they were at an advantage. The club was also 2–1 up in the four-game series. Needing just one more win to take the series, their designated Hitter, Hideki Matsui, ended the game with
a teeing home run off Oliver’s pitch in the tenth. Oakland was impressive to say the least.
Michael Young did most of the work for the Rangers as he drove in three runs for the team. Matsui, on the other end did the same, as he grounded out to third in the fifth to allow David Barton a run. Texan bullpen ace, Arthur Rhodes then conceded an all
important game tying home run to Josh Willingham. The hitter smashed the ball towards the left, 419 feet away, in the eighth inning.
Matsui came in to the tenth, going 1-for-10 against Oliver. The hitter had established a single in his career against the reliever. He made things interesting as he knocked the first pitch out of the park.
"I was trying to get ahead with a fastball", Oliver said. "That's pretty much it. The old guys let us down today. More often than not we're going to get the job done, but today wasn't our day".
For Matsui, it was a calculated move.
"I've faced him several times in the past, so I have a pretty good idea of what kind of pitches he throws, so I was looking for a fastball, and I pretty much got it where I expected", Matsui said through translator, Roger Kahlon.
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