The Texas Rangers secured a dramatic walk-off victory against the Kansas City Royals on Tuesday night, rallying from a two-run deficit in the ninth inning to win 7-6.
Rocker's Strong Start
Starting pitcher Kumar Rocker delivered six shutout innings despite command issues, allowing three walks while striking out two over 85 pitches.
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He induced nine swings and misses and escaped a bases-loaded jam in the third inning by getting Salvador Perez to ground out.
Rocker retired the final nine batters he faced to keep the Rangers in control early.
Early Lead and Royals' Response
Josh Jung opened the scoring with a solo home run in the first inning, and Texas added two unearned runs in the fourth after an infield error.
Nicky Lopez drove in a run with a single, extending the lead to 3-0.
The Royals answered in the seventh inning, batting around against relievers Tyler Alexander and Jakob Junis to score four runs and take a 4-3 lead.
Chris Martin struggled in the eighth, allowing a two-run homer to Carter Jensen that pushed Kansas City ahead 6-3.
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Ninth-Inning Comeback
Joc Pederson started the rally with a leadoff solo home run, his eighth of the season, off a 108 mph exit velocity.
Jung followed with an infield single after shortstop Bobby Witt Jr.'s throwing error, and Brandon Nimmo added another infield single.
Jake Burger tied the game at 6-6 with an opposite-field single, and Ezequiel Duran delivered the walk-off hit with a bloop single to right field.
Nimmo scored from third base ahead of the throw to complete the comeback.
Reliever Peyton Gray earned his first career Major League win after pitching a scoreless ninth inning.
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The victory marked only the second time in Texas franchise history that a reliever suffered a walk-off loss while facing at least five batters without recording an out.
