Texas Rangers celebrating after winning the World Series. (Photo Getty Images)
By Owen Kutlu, Staff Writer
The Texas Rangers did it. For the first time in the 63-year history of their franchise, the Rangers were crowned World Series champions after defeating the Arizona Diamondbacks in Game 5.
The first game of the series was a thriller that went into extra innings. Tied at five in the bottom 11th inning, Rangers outfielder Adolis García stepped up to the plate and took things into his own hands. García sent a blast to right field to walk it off for Texas and gave them the Game 1 a 1-0 series lead.
Arizona came back seeking revenge in Game 2. In a very lopsided affair, Arizona put up nine runs compared to the Rangers’ one to even the series. All the bats seemed to be working for the Diamondbacks, as designated hitter Tommy Pham went four-for-four and catcher Gabriel Moreno tacked on a solo home run.
From then on out, the series was all Texas. With ace Max Scherzer on the mound for Game 3, the Rangers managed to halt the Diamondbacks’ offense. A two-run homer from shortstop Corey Seager was the difference in the scoreline, as the Rangers took the game 3-1. With the win, Texas jumped back out to a lead in the series and needed two more wins to clinch the championship.
The Rangers came out hot in Game 4, scoring ten total runs within the first three innings, which included a monster three-run shot by second baseman Marcus Semien. While the Diamondbacks strung together a valiant effort in the final two innings, tallying six runs, the Rangers’ start proved to be too much to overcome. The 11-7 victory put Texas one win away from achieving the season-long task of raising the Commissioner’s Trophy.
Backs against the wall, Arizona could not come up with enough to keep the series alive at home. The Rangers’ pitching lineup did not allow a single run throughout the entirety of Game 5. Texas took care of business at the plate and recorded a respectable five runs, four of which came in the ninth inning. Semien remained on fire, as he crushed another home run to give the Rangers some insurance.
The Rangers made the postseason as a wild card and defied all odds en route to their first-ever title. That was the story of the season for Texas. After luring superstar pitcher Jacob DeGrom to the team in free agency, thanks to an enormous amount of money, there was a lot of positivity going into the season. That, unfortunately, faded very quickly after their massive offseason acquisition suffered a season-ending elbow injury just six games into his Rangers career.
This Texas team was all about fight and grit, and it showed when the games really mattered. Their trade deadline pickup of Max Scherzer also strengthened an already dominant starting rotation. Texas manager Bruce Bochy credited the championship to general manager Chris Young and the owner Ray Davis, saying that “they were determined to get winning baseball back to Texas,” and “they did everything they said they were going to do.”
