GAME THREAD: GAME THREAD: AL: TEXAS (53-68) at MINNESOTA (61-60)

AL: TEXAS at MINNESOTA

<div class="pre">AL AT MINNESOTA - MID INNING UPDATE
PLAY: J Benoit relieved F Francisco.
SITUATION: 0 RUNS IN, NONE ON, 0 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: TEXAS 5
MINNESOTA 0 BOTTOM, 9TH

DUE UP FOR MINNESOTA: J Kubel (.252, 2-FOR-3)</div>

 

AL: TEXAS at MINNESOTA

<div class="pre">AL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
TEXAS 0 0 0 2 3 0 0 0 0 5 8 0
MINNESOTA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 0 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: TEX - KAMERON LOE, MIKE WOOD (6TH), FRANK FRANCISCO (8TH), JOAQUIN
BENOIT (9TH) AND GERALD LAIRD

MIN - BOOF BONSER, JUAN RINCON (5TH), CARMEN CALI (9TH)
AND JOE MAUER

HOME RUNS: TEX - MARLON BYRD (5) OFF BOOF BONSER IN THE 4TH, 1 ON
JARROD SALTALAMACCHIA (2) OFF BOOF BONSER IN THE 5TH, 0 ON


MIN - NONE</div>

 

AL: TEXAS at MINNESOTA

<div class="pre">AL FINAL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
TEXAS 0 0 0 2 3 0 0 0 0 5 8 0
MINNESOTA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 0 (FINAL)

BATTERIES: TEX - KAMERON LOE, MIKE WOOD (6TH), FRANK FRANCISCO (8TH), JOAQUIN
BENOIT (9TH) AND GERALD LAIRD

MIN - BOOF BONSER, JUAN RINCON (5TH), CARMEN CALI (9TH)
AND JOE MAUER


WP - KAMERON LOE (6-9)
LP - BOOF BONSER (5-10)
SAVE - NONE

HOME RUNS: TEX - MARLON BYRD (5) OFF BOOF BONSER IN THE 4TH, 1 ON
JARROD SALTALAMACCHIA (2) OFF BOOF BONSER IN THE 5TH, 0 ON


MIN - NONE


TIME: 2:36 ATT: 41,037

PROBABLES: TEX - KEVIN MILLWOOD (8-9, 5.63)
MIN - JOHAN SANTANA (12-9, 3.02)</div>

 

AL: TEXAS at MINNESOTA

<div class="pre">TEXAS (5) VS MINNESOTA (0) - FINAL

TEXAS ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
F Catalanotto lf 4 1 2 0 0 0 0 .261
a-S Sosa ph 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .243
D Murphy pr-lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .462
I Kinsler 2b 4 0 0 0 1 1 4 .251
M Young ss 3 2 2 0 1 0 1 .305
M Byrd cf 4 1 2 4 0 0 1 .318
J Botts dh 3 0 0 0 1 2 0 .204
G Laird c 4 0 0 0 0 1 2 .231
N Cruz rf 3 0 1 0 1 0 0 .215
J Saltalamacchia 1b 4 1 1 1 0 1 2 .197
B Wilkerson 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .229
R Vazquez 3b 4 0 0 0 0 1 1 .233

Totals 33 5 8 5 5 6 11

a-walked for F Catalanotto in the 9th.

BATTING: 2B - F Catalanotto (16, B Bonser); M Young (33, B Bonser). HR - M Byrd
(5, 4th inning off B Bonser 1 on, 0 Out), J Saltalamacchia (2, 5th inning off B
Bonser 0 on, 0 Out). RBI - M Byrd 4 (47), J Saltalamacchia (5). 2-out RBI - M
Byrd 2. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - G Laird 1, I Kinsler 1. GIDP
- M Young. Team LOB - 6.

FIELDING: Outfield assists - N Cruz (J Morneau at 2nd base). DP: 3 (M Young-I
Kinsler-J Saltalamacchia, I Kinsler-M Young-J Saltalamacchia, R Vazquez-I
Kinsler-J Saltalamacchia).


MINNESOTA ab r h rbi bb so lob avg
J Tyner lf 4 0 1 0 1 0 3 .279
N Punto ss 3 0 0 0 0 1 2 .203
a-G Jones ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 .154
L Rodriguez 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .194
J Mauer c 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 .299
T Hunter cf 3 0 1 0 1 1 2 .298
J Morneau 1b 4 0 2 0 0 0 2 .284
M Cuddyer rf 3 0 0 0 1 0 2 .275
J Kubel dh 4 0 2 0 0 0 0 .252
T Watkins 3b-ss 3 0 1 0 1 1 3 .357
A Casilla 2b 3 0 1 0 1 0 1 .252

Totals 31 0 8 0 6 3 16

a-grounded to shortstop for N Punto in the 7th.

BATTING: Runners left in scoring position, 2 out - J Morneau 1, T Hunter 2, J
Tyner 2. GIDP - T Watkins, G Jones, M Cuddyer. Team LOB - 10.

BASERUNNING: SB - A Casilla (8, 2nd base off K Loe/G Laird).

FIELDING: Outfield assists - M Cuddyer (F Catalanotto at Home). DP: 1 (N
Punto-J Morneau).


----------------------------------------------------
TEXAS - 000 230 000 -- 5
MINNESOTA - 000 000 000 -- 0
----------------------------------------------------

TEXAS ip h r er bb so hr era
K Loe (W, 6-9) 5 3 0 0 5 2 0 5.56
M Wood 2 3 0 0 0 1 0 4.06
F Francisco 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 4.59
J Benoit 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 2.63

MINNESOTA ip h r er bb so hr era
B Bonser (L, 5-10) 4 2/3 7 5 5 3 2 2 4.93
J Rincon 3 1/3 0 0 0 1 2 0 5.82
C Cali 1 1 0 0 1 2 0 7.00

WP - C Cali, J Benoit. Pitches-strikes: K Loe 80-44; M Wood 23-16; F
Francisco 20-12; J Benoit 20-11; B Bonser 72-41; J Rincon 37-19; C Cali 20-13.
Ground balls-fly balls: K Loe 10-3; M Wood 3-1; F Francisco 3-0; J Benoit 2-1;
B Bonser 3-8; J Rincon 6-2; C Cali 1-0. Batters faced: K Loe 22; M Wood 7; F
Francisco 4; J Benoit 4; B Bonser 23; J Rincon 10; C Cali 5.

UMPIRES: HP--Mike Reilly. 1B--Rob Drake. 2B--Adam Dowdy. 3B--Andy Fletcher.

T--2:36. (Plus ceremonies delay totaling 36 minutes in the 1st). Att--41,037.

Weather: INDOORS</div>

 

AL: TEXAS at MINNESOTA

<div class="pre">** CONFIRMED **
AL
TEXAS 5
MINNESOTA 0 FINAL</div>

 

AL: TEXAS at MINNESOTA

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
TEXAS (5) AT MINNESOTA (0) - HOW THEY SCORED
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

TEXAS 4TH: M Young walked. M Byrd homered to left, M Young scored.
J Botts grounded out to shortstop. G Laird flied out to center. N Cruz flied
out to right. (2 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 2, MINNESOTA 0.

TEXAS 5TH: J Saltalamacchia homered to right. R Vazquez flied out to left.
F Catalanotto singled to right. I Kinsler popped out to second. M Young
doubled to deep right, F Catalanotto to third. M Byrd singled to center,
F Catalanotto and M Young scored. J Botts walked, M Byrd to second.
J Rincon relieved B Bonser. G Laird struck out swinging. (3 Runs, 4 Hits,
0 Errors) TEXAS 5, MINNESOTA 0.</div>

 

AL: TEXAS at MINNESOTA

<div class="pre">~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
TEXAS (5) AT MINNESOTA (0) - EVENT LOG
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Texas Starting Lineups -- F Catalanotto LF, I Kinsler 2B, M Young SS, M Byrd CF,
J Botts DH, G Laird C, N Cruz RF, J Saltalamacchia 1B, R Vazquez 3B, K Loe RHP.

Minnesota Starting Lineups -- J Tyner LF, N Punto SS, J Mauer C, T Hunter CF,
J Morneau 1B, M Cuddyer RF, J Kubel DH, T Watkins 3B, A Casilla 2B, B Bonser RHP.

Umpires -- Mike Reilly (HP), Rob Drake (1B), Adam Dowdy (2B), Andy Fletcher (3B).

Gametime Weather: INDOORS.


TEXAS 1ST: F Catalanotto doubled to left. I Kinsler struck out swinging.
M Young singled to right, F Catalanotto thrown out at home. M Byrd grounded
out to third. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 0, MINNESOTA 0.

MINNESOTA 1ST: J Tyner grounded out to first. N Punto grounded out to
shortstop. J Mauer walked. T Hunter singled to center, J Mauer to third.
J Morneau flied out to left. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 0, MINNESOTA 0.

TEXAS 2ND: J Botts struck out swinging. G Laird lined out to shortstop.
N Cruz walked. J Saltalamacchia lined out to center. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors)
TEXAS 0, MINNESOTA 0.

MINNESOTA 2ND: M Cuddyer grounded out to third. J Kubel grounded out to
second. T Watkins walked. A Casilla walked, T Watkins to second. J Tyner
grounded out to first. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 0, MINNESOTA 0.

TEXAS 3RD: R Vazquez popped out to shortstop. F Catalanotto grounded out
to first. I Kinsler flied out to right. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 0,
MINNESOTA 0.

MINNESOTA 3RD: N Punto grounded out to shortstop. J Mauer flied out to
left. T Hunter grounded out to second. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 0,
MINNESOTA 0.

TEXAS 4TH: M Young walked. M Byrd homered to left, M Young scored.
J Botts grounded out to shortstop. G Laird flied out to center. N Cruz flied
out to right. (2 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 2, MINNESOTA 0.

MINNESOTA 4TH: J Morneau flied out to left. M Cuddyer walked. J Kubel
singled to right, M Cuddyer to third. T Watkins grounded into double play,
shortstop to second to first, J Kubel out at second.(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors)
TEXAS 2, MINNESOTA 0.

TEXAS 5TH: J Saltalamacchia homered to right. R Vazquez flied out to left.
F Catalanotto singled to right. I Kinsler popped out to second. M Young
doubled to deep right, F Catalanotto to third. M Byrd singled to center,
F Catalanotto and M Young scored. J Botts walked, M Byrd to second.
J Rincon relieved B Bonser. G Laird struck out swinging. (3 Runs, 4 Hits,
0 Errors) TEXAS 5, MINNESOTA 0.

MINNESOTA 5TH: A Casilla reached on infield single to shortstop. A Casilla
stole second. J Tyner walked. N Punto struck out swinging. J Mauer grounded
out to first, A Casilla to third, J Tyner to second. T Hunter struck out
swinging. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 5, MINNESOTA 0.

TEXAS 6TH: N Cruz grounded out to second. J Saltalamacchia grounded out to
second. R Vazquez flied out to left. (0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 5,
MINNESOTA 0.

MINNESOTA 6TH: M Wood relieved K Loe. J Morneau singled to deep right,
J Morneau out stretching at second. M Cuddyer flied out to right. J Kubel
singled to left. T Watkins struck out swinging. (0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors)
TEXAS 5, MINNESOTA 0.

TEXAS 7TH: F Catalanotto grounded out to shortstop. I Kinsler walked.
M Young grounded into double play, shortstop to first, I Kinsler out at second.
(0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 5, MINNESOTA 0.

MINNESOTA 7TH: A Casilla grounded out to shortstop. J Tyner reached on
bunt single to second. G Jones hit for N Punto. G Jones grounded into double
play, second to shortstop to first, J Tyner out at second.(0 Runs, 1 Hit,
0 Errors) TEXAS 5, MINNESOTA 0.

TEXAS 8TH: L Rodriguez at third base. T Watkins at shortstop. M Byrd flied
out to right. J Botts struck out swinging. G Laird grounded out to second.
(0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors) TEXAS 5, MINNESOTA 0.

MINNESOTA 8TH: F Francisco relieved M Wood. J Mauer grounded out to third.
T Hunter walked. J Morneau singled to left, T Hunter to second. M Cuddyer
grounded into double play, third to second to first, J Morneau out at second.
(0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 5, MINNESOTA 0.

TEXAS 9TH: C Cali relieved J Rincon. N Cruz singled to center. N Cruz to
second on wild pitch by C Cali. J Saltalamacchia struck out swinging.
R Vazquez struck out looking. S Sosa hit for F Catalanotto. S Sosa walked.
D Murphy ran for S Sosa. I Kinsler grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop,
D Murphy out at second. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 5, MINNESOTA 0.

MINNESOTA 9TH: D Murphy in left field. B Wilkerson at first base. J Benoit
relieved F Francisco. J Kubel grounded out to shortstop. T Watkins singled to
center. A Casilla fouled out to third. T Watkins to second on wild pitch by
J Benoit. J Tyner grounded out to shortstop. (0 Runs, 1 Hit, 0 Errors) TEXAS 5,
MINNESOTA 0.</div>

 

Byrd, Loe power Rangers to win over Twins

<h3>TEXAS 5, MINNESOTA 0</h3>By Anthony Maggio
PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer


MINNEAPOLIS (Ticker) - Marlon Byrd homered and drove in aseason-high four runs and Kameron Loe won in his return from thedisabled list as the Texas Rangers topped the Minnesota Twins,5-0, on Saturday.


Byrd hit a two-run blast off Twins starter Boof Bonser in thefourth inning and was credited with two more RBI on an infieldsingle in the fifth.


Jason Kubel had two hits for Minnesota (61-61), which saw itsthree-game winning streak come to an end and trails theCleveland Indians (67-54) by 6 1/2 games in the American LeagueCentral.


Meanwhile, Loe (6-9), who was on the 15-day disabled list sinceAugust 4 with back stiffness, worked in and out of trouble butallowed just three hits with five walks and two strikeouts infive innings.


Mike Wood threw two scoreless innings and two relievers finishedit off.


After scoring on three runs in its previous two games, theRangers' offense got started early against Bonser (5-10).

Michael Young led off the fourth with a walk and Byrd followedwith his fifth homer of the season to left field.


Jarrod Saltalamacchia put the Rangers up, 3-0, by leading offthe fifth inning with his second home run in two days. FrankCatalanotto singled and Young doubled with two outs before Byrdsmacked a grounder up the middle.


Second basemen Alexi Casilla could not field ball cleanly andhis throw was dropped by Justin Morneau, allowing Young to scorefrom second ahead of Morneau's throw home. Bonser walked thenext batter, but reliever Juan Rincon struck out Gerald Laird toend the fifth.


For Bonser, it was another frustrating night. He has now gone12 starts since his last win on June 10 against the WashingtonNationals. The righthander gave up five runs on seven hits withthree walks and two homers in 4 2/3 innings.


Loe, on the other hand, bounced back from his own series ofrough outings prior to landing on the disabled list. Therighthander was 0-3 in his previous four starts with a 7.84 ERAand won for the first time since July 1.


Minnesota had plenty of chances, but couldn't come up with anyclutch hits against Loe, stranding four runners in scoringposition in the first five innings.

 

Byrd, Loe power Rangers to win over Twins

<h3>TEXAS 5, MINNESOTA 0</h3>By Anthony Maggio
PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer


MINNEAPOLIS (Ticker) - Kameron Loe thought there were fivedouble plays on Saturday. It only seemed like that many.

The sinkerball pitcher won in his return from the disabled listand Marlon Byrd drove in a season-high four runs as the TexasRangers blanked the Minnesota Twins, 5-0.


Loe (6-9), who was on the 15-day disabled list since August 4with back stiffness, won for the first time in six starts andhelped the Rangers snap a five-game road losing streak, thanksto five shutout innings and three double plays from the defense<div class="pre">- all of the inning-ending variety.</div>

"Maybe that's why it seemed so big," Loe said. "That's awesome,that's huge. We played good ball all around."


Byrd hit a two-run blast off Twins starter Boof Bonser in thefourth inning and was credited with two more RBI on an infieldsingle in the fifth. After going 0-for-5 with a 10thinning-strikeout when two runners were on base on Friday, it wasa feel-good performance.


"Different feel from last night," Byrd said. "Somebody needs tohit behind Michael Young and be able to get him pitches. Ifthey are not giving him pitches, we're going to struggle on theoffensive side. So I've got to go up there and put a littlefear in the pitcher's heart."


Loe (6-9) appeared fearless and pain-free on the mound, workingin and out of trouble but allowing only three hits to go withfive walks and two strikeouts in five innings.


Mike Wood threw two scoreless innings and two relievers finishedit off.


After scoring on three runs in its previous two games, theRangers' offense got started early against Bonser (5-10).

Young led off the fourth with a walk and Byrd followed with hisfifth homer of the season to left field.


Jarrod Saltalamacchia put the Rangers up, 3-0, by leading offthe fifth inning with his second home run in two days. FrankCatalanotto singled and Young doubled with two outs before Byrdsmacked a grounder up the middle.


Second basemen Alexi Casilla could not field ball cleanly andhis throw was dropped by Justin Morneau, allowing Young to scorefrom second ahead of Morneau's throw home. Bonser walked thenext batter, but reliever Juan Rincon struck out Gerald Laird toend the fifth.


"These guys have been bouncing back a lot," Texas manager RonWashington said. "It wasn't the first time they bounced back,won't be the last. We know what we've got offensively. Thepitching was there tonight, and tonight the offense supportedit."


For Bonser, it was another frustrating night. He has now gone12 starts since his last win on June 10 against the WashingtonNationals. The righthander gave up five runs on seven hits withthree walks and two homers in 4 2/3 innings.


Minnesota is 2-10 in Bonser's last 12 outings, and he has an 0-8record with a 5.64 ERA in that stretch. Bonser's last fivestarts have been even worse with an 0-4 record and a 6.67 ERA.He has walked seven and given up three home runs in his last twostarts.


"Tonight, a couple of the balls went out of the ballpark wherehe got too much of the plate with them," Twins manager RonGardenhire said.


"They hit a couple good pitches off him and was a little unluckythere (in the fifth inning). But obviously he wasn't goodenough to win a baseball game. He's throwing the ball fine. Wecan't seem to score runs for him and a night like tonight, hejust had a bad night."


Loe, on the other hand, bounced back from his own series ofrough outings prior to landing on the disabled list. Therighthander was 0-3 in his previous four starts with a 7.84 ERAand won for the first time since July 1.


"I hadn't really lost confidence," Loe said. "I definitely knowthat I can give us quality innings and go deep into games. Butyeah, this is something to build off."


Minnesota had plenty of chances, but couldn't come up with anyclutch hits against Loe, stranding four runners in scoringposition in the first five innings.


Jason Kubel had two hits for Minnesota (61-61), which saw itsthree-game winning streak come to an end and trails theCleveland Indians (67-54) by 6 1/2 games in the American LeagueCentral.