ARLINGTON, Texas — The Texas Rangers bullpen has established a bad trend in 2015 — yielding home runs to the first batters they face.
Texas relievers have allowed a major league-high seven homers to first batters faced this season, including tiebreaking homers surrendered by lefty Alex Claudio and right-hander Stolmy Pimentel in a loss to Kansas City on Tuesday.
Claudio has given up an MLB-high three this season, while right-hander Shawn Tolleson, who pitched a scoreless eighth in a 5-2 Texas victory over Kansas City on Wednesday, has allowed two.
A freaky baseball anomaly? A bad stretch?
“Home runs are thrown rather than hit,” Texas manager Jeff Banister. “It comes down to the execution of the pitch. That’s what I’ve seen. We have to be better at executing our pitches in those situations.”
Oakland and Toronto have also had problems this season, each giving up six.
“When you get closer to the end of the game, the heart rate is a little higher, anticipation, agitation, irritation seem to get to you. … When you’re in at the back of the game and it can go either way, you have to make sure you make pitches.”