Eleven runs crossed the plate before the first inning was over. That was the game. Everything that followed was Texas holding what it had seized in a frantic opening frame, as the Rangers defeated the Padres 9-7 on Friday night at Globe Life Field.
Ty France did the most damage for San Diego, going 3-for-4 with 2 home runs and 5 RBI. He gave the Padres a 5-0 lead with a grand slam to right in the first — France homered to right, scoring Taylor, Sheets, and Bogaerts — but Texas answered immediately and completely. Wyatt Langford finished 3-for-5 with a double and a home run, driving in 2 runs. His fourth-inning double scored Josh Jung to put Texas back in front for good, and he added a solo shot to left center in the eighth to extend the lead to 9-7. Jung scored 3 times, and Alejandro Osuna drove in 2 with a double in the first-inning comeback.
The Rangers' first inning was a rally built on doubles. Brandon Nimmo's double to center scored Joc Pederson to make it 5-1. Osuna then doubled to right, scoring Jung and Nimmo to cut it to 5-3. Jake Burger's double to left brought home Ezequiel Duran and Osuna to tie it at 5-5. Then Díaz reached on an infield single to third, and Burger scored to give Texas a 6-5 lead it would not relinquish for long — but long enough to matter. France answered with a solo homer to center in the fourth to tie it at 6-6, before Langford's go-ahead double put Texas back on top in the bottom half.
Jacob deGrom earned the win despite a difficult start, allowing 6 runs on 6 hits over 6.0 innings, striking out 9 and walking 3 on 106 pitches. His ERA: 3.59. Randy Vasquez absorbed the loss, charged with 7 runs — 6 earned — on 8 hits over 3.1 innings, falling to 6-5 with a 4.17 ERA. Jacob Metz recorded his 13th save, working 1.1 innings and allowing 1 hit.
Texas improved to 35-39, still carrying a three-game losing streak entering this one before snapping it. San Diego stands at 38-35. Joc Pederson is 2 away from 200 career doubles, and Brandon Nimmo is 11 away from 500 career RBI.