If the Texas Rangers are to manage a split of their four-game series in Kansas City, Patrick Corbin likely must end his recent struggles.
Following a much-needed victory, the Rangers will aim for their first two-game winning streak in more than two weeks as they face former teammate Michael Lorenzen on Thursday.
While both teams are outside of the American League wild-card positions, Kansas City is just 2 1/2 games behind of the final spot, with Texas 2 1/2 back of the Royals. However, the Rangers should have momentum after they rallied to snap Kansas City’s five-game winning streak with 6-3 win on Wednesday.
Down 3-1 after one inning, Texas chipped away and Corey Seager delivered a tying RBI single in the seventh. Kyle Higashioka broke the deadlock with a two-out, three-run double in the ninth.
The Rangers are 3-10 since winning consecutive games Aug. 4-5.
“At this point, it’s kind of win or go home,” Higashioka told the Rangers Sports Network. “Definitely, our backs are against the wall. It’s kind of a season make-or-break moment. We need every win we can get.”
It’s been a rough go of late for Corbin (6-9, 4.45 ERA), who is 0-2 with a 12.10 ERA in three August starts. On Saturday at Toronto, the left-hander yielded seven runs, eight hits and two walks while facing just 15 batters over 2 1/3 innings.
Corbin has not completed more than 4 1/3 innings in any of his past three starts, and his most recent quality start came on July 5.
“I’m just not pitching deep into games right now and kind of sticking to my strengths and going after guys — how I’ve done earlier this year,” Corbin told the Rangers’ official website.
“I’m frustrated about that. Just (have to) look back and try to find a way to get better.”
Corbin also hopes to be better than he was versus Kansas City on June 18, when he allowed four runs, two walks and six hits over five innings of Texas’ 6-3 home loss. Three of those runs came via a Maikel Garcia homer.
Kansas City’s Vinnie Pasquantino is 0-for-6 versus Corbin. However, he has homered in all three games of the current series. He is batting .306 (11-for-36) with six home runs and 17 RBIs in his past 10 games for the Royals, who are 7-2 on their 10-game homestand.
“He wants to be better in everything,” Kansas City manager Matt Quatraro said of Pasquantino. “At the end of the day, he’s an above-average major league hitter in the middle of an order of a winning team.”
Acquired from Texas at the 2024 trade deadline, Lorenzen (5-8, 4.43 ERA) will look to build on a solid return from missing more than a month due to an oblique strain. On Saturday, the veteran right-hander came off the injured list and yielded three hits and two walks over four scoreless innings during the Royals’ 6-2 victory over the Chicago White Sox.
Lorenzen, who has not allowed a run over 11 innings spanning his past two starts, is set to face his former team for the first time since 2022. He has no decisions with a 3.86 ERA in three career games (one start) vs. the Rangers.
Texas’ Marcus Semien is 3-for-4 versus Lorenzen, and he recorded his second three-hit game in the past four contests on Wednesday. Seager, meanwhile, is 7-for-16 with two doubles and two homers in the past four contests.
–Field Level Media
