When surging Texas goes for a three-game sweep of the visiting Chicago White Sox on Sunday at Globe Life Park in Arlington Antonio Morrison Jersey , Texas, Cole Hamels, the pitcher the Rangers expected to be their bell cow in this season of rebuilding, will be on the mound.
It remains to be seen how much longer Hamels (4-6, with a 3.61 ERA) stays in that position. He could, instead, be a huge piece to the puzzle in a trade that would net more prospects for a team in dire need of them.
The White Sox will send right-hander Reynaldo Lopez (3-5, 3.73 ERA) to the mound in the series finale.
The Rangers beat Chicago 13-4 on Saturday behind five solid innings from the ageless Bartolo Colon, a three-run double from Robinson Chirinos, a home run from Joey Gallo and a seven-run eighth inning.
Texas was without designated hitter Shin-Soo Choo on Saturday as he battles right quad soreness and was given the night off.
Choo said his upper quad has been bothering him over the past 10 days, but he’s played through it well enough to extend his streak of reaching base to 41 straight games, tops in the Major Leagues this season. It’s also tied with Toby Harrah (1985) for the third-longest single-season streak in club history.
“I felt like it was an opportunity to get him off his legs, give him a day,” manager Jeff Banister told mlb.com about Choo’s absence from the starting lineup. “He’s played through it for a while.”
Choo underwent an MRI at his own request on Saturday and said afterward he does not believe the injury is serious.
“I know I have the streak going on, but my body and staying healthy is more important,” Choo said. “And winning games is more important than records. I don’t want to make it worse. I don’t think it’s serious.”
Chicago is another team building from the ground up but already has its second baseman of the future, Yoan Moncada, on the field as an everyday player. Moncada, who was acquired from Boston as part of the trade that sent Chris Sale to the Red Sox, has struggled through the first half of the season, hitting just .225 after batting .231 in 54 games last season.
He also has a team-high 13 errors at second base.
“I did not expect to have as many tough, difficult moments as I’ve been having,” Moncada told the Chicago Sun-Times. “I’ve learned that this is a process, it’s something young guys have to get used to. You can’t get frustrated at any point. If you keep your faith in what you do, you’re going to be good.”
Lopez will make his 17th start of the season, 10th on the road and second against the Rangers this season when he takes the hill on Sunday. He is 1-1 with a 2.55 ERA over his past three road starts. His last time out, on June 26, Lopez earned the win versus Minnesota Patrik Laine Jersey , allowing four runs on six hits over 6 1/3 innings in an 8-4 Chi-Sox victory.
Lopez is receiving a 3.45 run support average this season, the ninth-lowest in the AL. He will be making his third career start against the Rangers and second at Globe Life Park.
Lopez garnered the win in his last start against Texas on May 20 in Chicago, pitching eight scoreless innings.
Hamels will also make his 17th start of the season and leads all Texas starters in ERA (3.61), starts (16), innings (97 1/3), and strikeouts (97). He has gone 3-2 with a 3.28 ERA in his nine starts since May 5 to lower his ERA from 4.08 to 3.61.
Hamels will be working on five days’ rest and last worked and took a no-decision in the Rangers’ 7-4 win on Monday at home against San Diego. He allowed a season-high nine hits in that game, exiting after trailing 4-1 in the sixth, ending a streak of eight straight starts six-plus or more innings pitched.
Hamels has gone 2-0 with a 2.86 ERA in four career starts against the White Sox, recording quality starts in three of those four outings.
CLEVELAND (AP) — For the Browns, winning the season opener over Pittsburgh could bring closure.
The end of a 17-game losing streak. The first opening-week victory since 2004. More relief from the haunting memories of an 0-16 season. A new beginning for a franchise and fan base that has suffered far too long.
Rarely has a first game felt some important. Beyond big.
“Whew,” Browns wide receiver Josh Gordon said as he considered the multi-layered impact of beating the Steelers. “That’s the equivalent of making the playoffs here, almost a Super Bowl win. It’s something we’ve been wanting for a long time.”
It’s been five years since Gordon played in an opener, and his return after being sidelined for years by personal demons may best symbolize Cleveland’s rebirth.
The Browns believe they’re back.
When they take the field at FirstEnergy Stadium to face their hated rival, the Browns will have 31 new players — including new quarterback Tyrod Taylor and Pro Bowl wide receiver Jarvis Landry — on a roster demolished over the past few months by general manager John Dorsey and his staff. Dorsey was the mastermind of a similar rebuilding project in Kansas City, and he’s in the early stages of pushing Cleveland back to relevance.
The Browns, so accustomed to drama, seem to be coming together. The Steelers, one of the NFL’s standards of consistency, aren’t themselves.
Pittsburgh will likely be without star running back Le’Veon Bell, holding out in a contract dispute that triggered teammates to turn on him earlier this week.
“Honestly it’s a little selfish,” said center Maurkice Pouncey. “I’m kind of (ticked) right now. It sucks that he’s not here. We’ll move on as a team.”
Bell returned from a lengthy absence last season in time to play in the opener at Cleveland, but he was mostly ineffective and ran for 32 yards on 10 carries in Pittsburgh’s 21-18 win.
The Browns were without dynamic defensive end Myles Garrett that day because of injury, and the second-year defensive end is positive he would have made a difference in the outcome.
Garrett’s healthy and the 2017 No. 1 overall pick knows what a win for the Browns could bring.
“It’d be an eye opener for the rest of the league,” he said.
WEAK 1: The last time the Browns won an opener, Jeff Garcia was their starting quarterback, one of 29 for the team since 1999.
Cleveland’s last opening win came in 2004 over Baltimore, and the first-week losses since have set the tone for so many losing seasons. Coach Hue Jackson tried to downplay the magnitude of Sunday’s matchup while appreciating its enormity.
“I am not going to say it is the Super Bowl,” he said. “The Super Bowl is in February Authentic Marcus Johansson Jersey , but it is a huge game for us. It is our division rival. It is an AFC North game, so it really counts as two. We all recognize that, and we want to get to winning as fast as we can, but it is a 16-game season and we get that, too.”
THIS BUD’S FOR YOU: The Steelers got 16 of their franchise-record and NFL-leading 57 sacks last season against Cleveland. Still, that didn’t stop them from flipping outside linebackers T.J. Watt and Bud Dupree in the offseason hoping to produce more pressure off the edge. Pittsburgh picked up Dupree’s fifth-year option for 2019 and moved him to the quarterback’s blind side.
“What Bud did too much of last year, in my opinion, was he got past the quarterback,” defensive coordinator Keith Butler said. “To me, you’re useless when you’re past the quarterback and trying to rush the quarterback. Now, he won’t be as useless behind the quarterback because he can work back a little bit, or he can go up and under where the quarterback won’t see him.”
TAYLOR’S TURN: Taylor helped Buffalo snap a 17-year playoff drought in Buffalo last season. His first goal in Cleveland? One win.
Despite drafting Baker Mayfield with No. 1 overall pick, the Browns are starting Taylor while the Heisman Trophy winner develops.
“He’s a capable quarterback,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said. “His mobility and decision making are excellent. Anytime that you have anybody under center who brings those two components of mobility, things that you are able to do schematically and things that he is able to create form an ad lib prospective, and you couple that with decision making, that it is a weapon.”
OLD FRIENDS: Todd Haley’s on the other side of the Steelers-Browns rivalry.
After six seasons with Pittsburgh, Haley is running Cleveland’s offense. Although he’s not making this matchup personal, the Browns know he wants to show the Steelers what they’re missing.
“It would mean the world to him,” Jackson said. “We all want it. We all want it for him.”
FICHTNER’S FLAVOR: Randy Fichtner spent more than a decade as the quarterbacks coach before being promoted to offensive coordinator when Pittsburgh opted to let Haley’s contract expire. The 54-year-old hasn’t altered the playbook much, but he’s expected to give quarterback Ben Roethlisberger more freedom to run the no-huddle offense.
“I think a lot of it depends on how the game is going, the flow of the game,” said Roethlisberger, who is 21-2 in starts against Cleveland. “We don’t want to force anything, but sometimes you have to try to mix it up and throw some different wrinkles at them.”
