Rangers complete streak over Orioles

The Baltimore Orioles lost their fourth game in a row, on Sunday July 16, after the Texas Rangers brushed them aside with the best pitching in the league.
The Texas Rangers went into their game at Oriole Park tied on first place in the American league west with Oakland, and on the back of a three game winning streak. However, the Orioles had lost five games in a row, and seemed to be out of the wildcard race.
Starting pitcher Kevin Millwood, of the Texas Rangers, was just one of the Rangers influential pitching force, which has held its opponents to four or fewer runs in the last seven games, which is the longest streak in the MLB, and it showed as Millwood struck out the first three Orioles batters at the top of the first inning, and began to work on a no-hitter in the fourth.
Although, the Rangers batters failed to capitalise on this, and it remained tied on nothing as they entered the fourth inning.
It was in the fourth inning that the Rangers played their best inning of the game. De Rosa, with an average of .313 against right handed pitchers, and on the back of a three homer and 7 RBI game, started the ball rolling with a single. This was followed by a Gary Matthews JR. double play, who was on an average of .333 going into the game. The Rangers knew they had to take any chances they got, so Michael Young hit a sacrifice fly to centre field, so De Rosa could score the fist run of the game. This was followed by a second sacrifice fly to right field by Mark Teixeira, who had an average of .280 against right handed pitchers before this game, which set up Matthews to cross home plate, to give the Rangers a 2-0 lead going into the bottom of the fourth inning.
The Orioles tried their best to reply from the two runs, and they almost got their first run when Mora?s fly ball hits the centre field wall, missing the stands by just three feet. Because it clearly seemed to be heading out of the field, Mora was taking his time going around the bases, and because of this close miss, only got to first base on what was probably the best chance the Orioles had of getting a run.
It wasn?t until the sixth inning when the Orioles scored their first run. With Tejada on third Mora, with an average of .143 and 1 hit versus Millwood, hit a sacrifice fly to the left field, which sent Tejada to third base. This was followed by a second sacrifice fly by Hernandez, which allowed Tejada to cross home plate to score the only run for the Orioles, and the last run of the game.
After the game, Millwood said how he couldn?t keep his form up as long as he wanted.
Millwood said: "I was tired. The extra time off - missing my last start and the All-Star Game - was good from a strength standpoint but not good for my stamina.
Millwood also talked about how he well he has recovered from his injury. "My arm felt good and I felt strong," he said, "With physically, no pain, and feeling like my mechanics are where they need to be, it was a really good night for me".
This victory for the Rangers means they take the top spot in the west after Oakland was beaten against Boston, and the Orioles could be in trouble after Tampa Bay claimed a victory, meaning they are only one game behind them.

Author: Eric Wood
Rochdale iJourno Sports Group