Live blog: Yankees-Rangers ALCS Game 2 - MLB

UPDATE: The Rangers have pulled even with the Yankees, taking Game 2 of the ALCS by the score of 7-2. It wasn’t easy, but Neftali Feliz pitched a scoreless ninth inning in a non-save situation to put a stamp on the victory. Perfect timing, really, as Game 1 of the NLCS between the Giants and Phillies is beginning…literally right now.

Stay tuned for the post-game recap from our very own Matthew Pouliot.

Thanks for reading and enjoy!

7:42 PM: And we’re headed to the ninth in Texas. The Rangers threatened in the bottom of the eighth, but were unable to add insurance, so the score remains 7-2. Josh Hamilton drew his fourth walk of the night and stole second base again, but Jorge Posada was smart enough to not throw through with a runner on third base this time.

And yes, Neftali Feliz is pitching.

7:24 PM: Ron Washington has some marbles — and maybe a dash of faith, too. He brought in Darren Oliver for the top of the eighth inning and the left-hander promptly issued a leadoff walk to Nick Swisher. It wasn’t a repeat of last night, though, as he got Jorge Posada to strike out and Lance Berkman to ground out on an excellent play by Ian Kinsler at second base. To complete tonight’s redemption arc, Darren O’ Day came on to get Marcus Thames to ground out to end the inning. You better believe that Neftali Feliz will be pitching the ninth.

7:13 PM: Jeff Francoeur — pinch-hitting for David Murphy — just came this close to hitting a home run off Boone Logan in the bottom of the seventh inning. Not surprised by the warning track power off a lefty so much, but it is worth noting that he actually took the first pitch.

7:00 PM: Feel free to exhale, Rangers fans. Alexi Ogando was able to get Robinson Cano to strike out with two runners on in the seventh, keeping the score at 7-2. It’s stretch time.

6:32 PM: Rapada went full with Thames, but struck him out swinging for the third out. It’s 7-2 in the middle of the sixth.

6:27 PM: Colby Lewis was just pulled from the game after throwing 102 pitches over 5 2/3 innings. He struck out Nick Swisher after the home run by Cano, but gave up a single to Jorge Posada and walked Lance Berkman. Clay Rapada is in with a chance to redeem himself against Marcus Thames, the man who delivered the go-ahead single last night. Thames is pinch-hitting for Brett Gardner.

6:20 PM: Well, Robinson Cano wasn’t going to be denied this time. After hitting the ball to the warning track in the second and just missing a homer in the fourth, he hit an absolute bomb to the upper deck in right field with one out in the sixth. Fortunately for the Rangers, it was just a solo home run, so the score is still 7-2.

6:10 PM: Chamberlain was able to strike out David Murphy and Bengie Molina, but Mitch Moreland went the other way and poked a two-out single to left, giving the Rangers a 7-1 lead through five innings.

6:00 PM: Phil Hughes is done after four-plus innings, allowing six runs (for now) on 10 hits. Joe Girardi brought the hook after Ian Kinsler knocked in Nelson Cruz with a triple. Kinsler went the other way with the pitch and Nick Swisher attempted an all-out dive to catch it, but came up empty-handed. Cruz led off the inning with his second double — and near home run — of the game.

Joba Chamberlain is in the ballgame with Kinsler on third base and no outs.

5:35 PM: The Yankees are on the board in Arlington. Robinson Cano led off the top of the fourth with a long fly ball to center that narrowly missed going out for a home run. He settled for a double and move to third base on a wild pitch. Lance Berkman drove him in with a line drive drive that deflected off Mitch Moreland’s glove at first base and into shallow right field, but was caught in a run-down after making a wide turn around the first base bag.

5:23 PM: Unlike last night, the Rangers aren’t letting their scoring opportunities go to waste. David Murphy and Bengie Molina connected for back-to-back doubles, giving the Rangers a 5-0 lead through three innings. And to think, it could have been even more if Ron Washington didn’t have Ian Kinsler bunt Nelson Cruz over to third base with nobody out. Hate that play. Hate it. Sergio Mitre is already throwing in the bullpen for the Yankees.

5:13 PM: The Yankees got two runners on against Colby Lewis in the third, but couldn’t cash in. Derek Jeter reached on an infield single and Curtis Granderson was nicked on the lefty knee/shin area by a pitch. It was actually an amazingly good call by home plate umpire Tony Randazzo, because it took me until about the third replay to see that the ball actually hit him. Anyway, Alex Rodriguez grounded out to end the inning, so no damage done.

5:00 PM: I feel like we’ve been here before…

The Rangers tacked on another run on an RBI double by Michael Young and lead 3-0 after two innings. Phil Hughes was able to escape further damage by getting Vladimir Guerrero to ground out with the bases loaded. Hughes has already thrown 55 pitches over the first two innings of the ballgame. By contrast, CC Sabathia had 50 pitches through two innings last night.

4:52 PM: David Murphy just gave the Rangers a 2-0 lead with a solo home run off the second deck in right field. This is a very good sign for the Rangers. Murphy was limited a bit towards the end of the season due to a groin injury — and was held out of the first two games of the ALDS against the Rays — but is a real weapon against right-handed pitching.

4:43 PM: The Yankees threatened in the top of the second inning, getting two runners on, but failed to score against Lewis. Robinson Cano crushed a ball to right center field, but Nelson Cruz was able to calmly track it down and make a jumping catch on the warning track. Hopefully this series will be a chance for people to see how good Cruz really is, both offensively and defensively.

4:30 PM: Antler attack. Elvis Andrus just used his speed to get the Rangers on the board first against Phil Hughes and the Yankees. After reaching on an infield single to lead off the bottom of the first, Andrus advanced to second base on a wild pitch, stole third base and then swiped home when Jorge Posada tried to throw out Josh Hamilton at second base.

It was a real mental lapse for a veteran catcher like Posada, who should have looked a speedster such as Andrus back at third before throwing. Likewise, Robinson Cano could have just tagged Hamilton. That’s what speed will do to the opposition.

Hughes threw 28 pitches in the first inning.

4:12 PM: Lewis just retired the Yankees in order in the top of the first, including a swinging strikeout of Derek Jeter. He needed only nine pitches.

4:02 PM: The Rangers dropped Game 1 of the ALCS against the Yankees in painful fashion last night. They’ll have to bounce back quickly for Game 2, which is set to begin in just a few minutes.

Like last night, I’ll be dropping some of my random thoughts and observations here throughout the ballgame. Feel free to join the conversation in our comments section.

Game 2 starters:

Phil Hughes – The 24-year-old right-hander went 18-8 with a 4.19 ERA during the regular season. He didn’t make a start against the Rangers this season, but tossed a scoreless inning of relief in an extra-inning game back on September 10. Hughes hurled seven shutout innings in Game 3 of the ALDS against the Twins last Saturday.

Colby Lewis – Signed after spending the last two years in Japan, Lewis went 12-13 with a 3.72 ERA during the regular season. He hasn’t faced the Yankees since August 5, 2003. Lewis hurled five shutout frames in Game 3 of the ALDS against the Rays last Saturday.

Looking for lineups? I have you covered right here.

ATLANTA – Given a seven-run lead in the first inning, Atlanta right-hander Spencer Strider could relax and keep adding to his majors-leading strikeout total.

“That game felt like it was over pretty quick,” Strider said.

Ronald Acuña Jr. drove in three runs with four hits, including a two-run single in Atlanta’s seven-run first inning, and the Braves beat the Philadelphia Phillies 11-4 on Sunday night to split the four-game series.

“Getting a lead first is big, especially when you get that big of a lead,” Strider said. “… When we’re putting up runs, my job isn’t to be perfect. My job is to get outs.”

Following the game, Braves manager Brian Snitker announced right-hander Michael Soroka will be recalled to make his first start since the 2020 season on Monday night at Oakland.

Matt Olson hit a pair of two-run homers for Atlanta, and Strider became the fastest pitcher in modern history to reach 100 strikeouts in a season.

“It’s incredible,” said Acuña through a translator of Strider. “Every time he goes out to pitch it seems like he’s going to strike everybody out.”

Acuña hit a run-scoring triple in the fifth before Olson’s second homer to center. Acuña had two singles in the first when the Braves sent 11 batters to the plate, collected seven hits and opened a 7-0 lead. Led by Acuña and Olson, who had three hits, the Braves set a season high with 20 hits.

Strider (5-2) struck out nine while pitching six innings of two-run ball. The right-hander fired a called third strike past Nick Castellanos for the first out of the fourth, giving him 100 strikeouts in 61 innings and topping Jacob deGrom‘s 61 2/3 innings in 2021 as the fastest to 100 in the modern era.

“It’s cool,” Strider said, adding “hopefully it’ll keep going.”

Olson followed Acuña’s leadoff single with a 464-foot homer to right-center. Austin Riley added another homer before Ozzie Albies and Acuña had two-run singles in the long first inning.

Phillies shortstop Trea Turner and left fielder Kyle Schwarber each committed an error on a grounder by Orlando Arcia, setting up two unearned runs in the inning.

Strider walked Kody Clemens to open the third. Brandon Marsh followed with a two-run homer for the Phillies’ first hit. Schwarber hit a two-run homer off Collin McHugh in the seventh.

LEAPING CATCH

Michael Harris II celebrated the one-year anniversary of his major league debut by robbing Schwarber of a homer with a leaping catch at the center-field wall in the second. As Harris shook his head to say “No!” after coming down with the ball on the warning track, Strider pumped his fist in approval on the mound – after realizing Harris had the ball.

“He put me through an emotional roller coaster for a moment,” Strider said.

SOROKA RETURNING TO ROTATION

Soroka was scratched from his scheduled start at Triple-A Gwinnett on Sunday, setting the stage for his final step in his comeback from two torn Achilles tendons.

“To get back is really a feather in that kid’s cap,” Snitker said.

Soroka will be making his first start in the majors since Aug. 3, 2020, against the New York Mets when he suffered a torn right Achilles tendon. Following a setback which required a follow-up surgery, he suffered another tear of the same Achilles tendon midway through the 2021 season.

Soroka suffered another complication in his comeback when a hamstring injury slowed his progress this spring.

Acuña said he was “super happy, super excited for him, super proud of him” and added “I’m just hoping for continued good health.”

Soroka looked like an emerging ace when he finished 13-4 with a 2.68 ERA in 2019 and placed second in the NL Rookie of the Year voting and sixth in the NL Cy Young voting.

The Braves are 0-3 in bullpen committee games as they attempt to overcome losing two key starters, Max Fried (strained left forearm) and Kyle Wright (right shoulder inflammation) to the injured list in early May. Each is expected to miss at least two months.

RHP Dereck Rodriguez, who gave up one hit in two scoreless innings, was optioned to Gwinnett after the game to clear a roster spot for Soroka.

QUICK EXIT

Phillies right-hander Dylan Covey (0-1), claimed off waivers from the Los Angeles Dodgers on May 20, didn’t make it through the first inning. Covey allowed seven runs, five earned, and six hits, including the homers by Olson and Riley.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Phillies: 3B Alex Bohm was held out with hamstring tightness. … LHP José Alvarado (left elbow inflammation) threw the bullpen session originally scheduled for Saturday. Manager Rob Thomson said there was no report that Alvarado, who was placed on the injured list on May 10, had any difficulty.

UP NEXT

Phillies: Following an off day, LHP Ranger Suárez (0-1, 9.82 ERA) is scheduled to face Mets RHP Kodai Senga (4-3, 3.94 ERA) in Tuesday night’s opener of a three-game series in New York.

Braves: Soroka was 1-2 with a 4.33 ERA in eight games with Triple-A Gwinnett. He allowed a combined four hits and two runs over 10 2/3 innings in his last two starts. RHP Paul Blackburn (7-6, 4.28 ERA in 2022) is scheduled to make his 2023 debut for Oakland as he returns from a finger injury.