Beltre-ing Performance as Rangers Defeat Rays
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October 5, 2011 TheFreshOutlook  |
The Texas Rangers are through to the ALCS for second consecutive year after a 3-1 series win over the Rays.
They owe much of their victory to 32-year-old Adrian Beltre, who hit three of their four solo home runs in this match which gave them a 4-3 win over the Tampa Bay Rays, and a 3-1 American League Division Series (ALDS) which puts them in to the American League Championship Series (ALCS).
Having lost the World Series last year to the San Francisco Giants, the Rangers are determined to go one step further this year and this result will give them hope of that ahead of their ALCS with either the New York Yankees or the Detroit Tigers, who are now tied at 2-2 thanks to the Yankees’ dominant 10-1 win on Tuesday.
Beltre’s triple score is a record-tying feat in a play-off match, and after he had gone 1-11 in the first three games he will be delighted with an upsurge in form.
The Rangers got off to the perfect start when Ian Kinsler hit the second pitch of the game from Rays starter Jeremy Hellickson out of the park and the Rangers led from there.
Beltre then hit Hellickson for two further home runs before notching his third off the pitching of reliever Matt Moore.
An RBI double from Matt Joyce had made it 2-1, and a two-out double from Sean Rodriguez and a single by Casey Kotchman added another score in the fourth.
After Beltre had extended the lead to 4-2, Rodriguez again struck off of a single by Kotchman but they could not push any further and for the second year running the Rangers were victorious over their foes in the post-season.
If the Tigers had beaten the Yankees they, too, would have secured their place in the ALCS, but the Yankees had other ideas and a 10-1 thrashing means they now have the momentum going in to the deciding Game 5.
That match had been tight up until the eighth, but the Yankees scored six runs during that inning to give the scoreline a much more one-sided feel.
Russell Martin and Brett Gardner both got two scores for the franchise while Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira, Chris Dickerson, Jorge Posada and Jesus Montero got the others. Curtis Granderson, Robinson Cano and Nick Swisher were the only Yankees not to get on the scoreboard.
Victor Martinez was the only Tiger to bear his claws on Tuesday evening.
In the National League Division Series (NLDS), the Philadelphia Phillies lead their series with the St Louis Cardinals 2-1 after a 3-2 win away from home, while the Arizona Diamondbacks picked up their first win in Game 3 to halve the Milwaukee Brewers lead to 2-1 with a home 8-1 victory.
By Leigh Gruffydd Sanders
[Image courtesy of Keith Allison]