The Texas Rangers have a chance to move back to .500 when they open a three-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday night in Arlington, Texas.
Texas was 11-19 after 30 games last season before finishing last in the American League West, 36 games out of first place. Jeff Banister wasn’t around to see the conclusion, getting fired with 10 games left in his fourth season as manager of the Rangers.
The Rangers have been better this season, sitting at 14-15, and they should be the better-rested team in the series opener on Friday.
Texas had a day off at home Thursday after finishing a two-game series against the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday afternoon.
The Blue Jays played Thursday night against the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim, Calif., losing 6-2 before flying to Texas. The Angels swept the three-game series.
The Rangers hope to continue getting strong early-season performances from Mike Minor and Danny Santana.
Minor, who is scheduled to start Friday’s series opener, is coming off a 13-strikeout performance in a 15-1 win against the Seattle Mariners on Saturday. Not only was that a career high, but it matched Cliff Lee and Jamie Moyer for the most strikeouts by a left-hander in team history.
Minor (3-2, 2.88 ERA) has continued to adjust his style to become less predictable in his pitch selection.
“I used to think the fastball was what I needed to be heaviest with,” Minor told reporters after his last start. “Now, the game has changed a little. For a long time, I felt like I was a two-pitch guy. I came into this season wanting to use all my pitches.”
Santana batted .179 in just 28 at-bats with the Atlanta Braves last season and wasn’t in the majors when this season began. A knee injury to Rangers second baseman Rougned Odor in the middle of last month prompted the Rangers to purchase Santana’s minor league contract.
In his first game with Texas on April 14, Santana had a two-run pinch-hit triple in the bottom of the eighth to tie the score against the Oakland A’s. He then scored the go-ahead run in the 8-7 win.
Santana has continued to deliver. He enters the weekend hitting .355 with three home runs and 11 RBIs, and can play both infield and outfield for the Rangers. He’s 8-for-13 in the past four games with three doubles and a home run.
Odor came off the injured list on April 26, went 0-for-5 with four strikeouts and is 2-for-24 with 12 strikeouts in the past five games overall since his return.
In a 7-5 loss to the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday, Odor’s spot came up in the bottom of the ninth with two runners on and two out, but Rangers manager Chris Woodward lifted Odor for pinch hitter Hunter Pence, who struck out to end the game.
“I was honest with him,” Woodward said after the game. “I said, ‘Hopefully in the near future, I’ll never have to do that again.’ ”
Toronto’s scheduled Friday starter, rookie right-hander Trent Thornton (0-3, 5.08 ERA), is still seeking his first major league win after six starts.
He came the closest in his last outing, allowing one run and two hits in five innings against the visiting A’s, but left with the score tied 1-1 and the Blue Jays eventually won 5-4 in 13 innings.
Thornton walked five batters in the game after combining for seven walks in his first five starts.
“He’s still not commanding his pitches,” Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo said.