Rangers score five in 8th, come back to nip A's 8-6

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Jonah Heim hit a two-run home run with two outs in the eighth to cap a five-run rally, lifting the Texas Rangers past the Oakland Athletics, 8-6, on Saturday.

Trailing 6-2 after being held down by starter Cole Irvin, the Rangers took advantage of the A’s struggling bullpen. DJ Peters hit a two-run home run and Yohel Pozo added an RBI double off Sergio Romo before Heim’s homer on an 0-2 pitch from Andrew Chafin (1-3). The ball traveled an estimated 447 feet.

“I don’t think I’ve ever hit a ball that far,” said Heim, who spent last season in Oakland before being traded to Texas in the offseason as part of a deal that included Elvis Andrus. “As a young team and young guys, it shows you can win a ballgame at any time. It just proves to these guys to stay on course and keep fighting until the last out.”

It’s the sixth time in 76 games this season that the Rangers have come back to win after trailing going into the eighth.

“I just love how the guys rallied around each other,” manager Chris Woodward said. “We fell behind and it’s easy to kind of write that one off. It’s a playoff-contending team, they’re clawing and scratching to make the playoffs. In that eighth inning guys had quality at-bats one after the other. Huge hits. One of our best wins, if not the best, of the year.”

Matt Olson, Starling Marte and Mark Canha homered for the A’s.

Oakland, which entered the day one game behind the Yankees for the second AL wild card, has eight blown saves in the last 19 games.

“We have a lot of confidence in Romo and Chafin finishing off that game. It just didn’t happen,” A’s manager Bob Melvin said. “It’s hard to give up five in the eighth inning when you feel like you have the game in control.”

Texas hadn’t...

source https://www.chron.com/sports/article/Rangers-score-five-in-8th-come-back-to-nip-A-s-16451892.php