The game turned in one inning. Detroit led by one heading into the fifth, and four runs later, the Rangers never recovered. Riley Greene was the engine of it all, finishing 3-for-4 with a home run, a triple, and four RBI in the Tigers' 6-3 win over Texas on Sunday at Globe Life Field.
Greene did his damage in two separate bursts. In the fourth, he launched a two-run homer to right — 431 feet — that scored Kerry Carpenter and gave Detroit a 2-1 lead it would not relinquish. That was the go-ahead swing. Then in the fifth, with the Tigers already extending their advantage, Greene tripled to center to score Dillon Dingler and Carpenter, pushing the lead to 6-1. He finished the night hitting .292 with 13 home runs and 44 RBI on the season.
The fifth inning was where Texas's night unraveled. Dillon Dingler singled to center to score James Outman, making it 3-1. Then a wild pitch by Robert Ahlstrom brought home Kevin McGonigle to push it to 4-1. Greene's triple capped the four-run frame. Texas answered with one run in the bottom half — Nicky Lopez scored on Brandon Nimmo's infield single — but the deficit was too steep. Ezequiel Duran added a solo home run to center in the eighth, but the Rangers could get no closer than three.
Casey Mize earned the win, working 6.2 innings and allowing 2 runs on 5 hits with 4 strikeouts and 2 walks, carrying a 2.64 ERA. Kumar Rocker took the loss, falling to 2-7 after surrendering 3 runs on 5 hits over 4.1 innings, with a 3.95 ERA. Jake Burger's solo homer to left center in the third — 447 feet — had given Texas an early 1-0 lead, but Rocker could not hold it. Kenley Jansen worked a clean ninth for his 10th save of the season.
Detroit improved to 39-50 with the victory. Texas fell to 45-44. Joc Pederson, who went 1-for-3 with a walk for the Rangers, is 2 away from 200 career doubles and 8 away from 1,000 career hits. Brandon Nimmo, who drove in a run with his infield single, is 7 away from 500 career RBI.