Series Recap: Texas Rangers at Philadelphia Phillies 5/21-5/23

The Texas Rangers opened a six-game road trip with a three-game series against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. The Rangers at Phillies series started on Tuesday and ended on Thursday. Here’s what you need to know about the Rangers’ road series in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Tuesday, May 21 

Rangers pitcher Jon Gray pitched five innings and gave up four hits, two earned runs, three walks, and four strikeouts. Meanwhile, Phillies pitcher Ranger Suarez pitched seven innings and gave up five hits, one earned run, two walks, and ten strikeouts. Before Tuesday’s ballgame, Texas shared good and bad news with the general public. Adolis Garcia was out on Tuesday with a forearm injury, while Marcus Semien was congratulated for ten years of MLB service time.

After two scoreless innings, Texas finally got on the board in the top of the third inning. Marcus Semien doubled on a fly ball to Brandon Marsh. Derek Hill scored for a 1-0 lead. The Phillies responded to the Rangers in the bottom of the third inning. Kyle Schwarber singled on a ground ball to Derek Hill. Brandon Marsh scored to tie the game 1-1. The Phillies took a one-run lead in the bottom of the fourth inning. Alec Bohm singled on a line drive to Derek Hill. Bryce Harper scored to make it a 2-1 game. 

The Phillies took a two-run lead in the bottom of the sixth inning. Bryce Harper homered on a fly ball to center field to extend the Phillies’ lead to 3-1. The Rangers made it a one-run game in the top of the eighth inning. The umpire reviewed Corey Seager’s play for a possible home run. The crew chief review was quick, as it should have been since the ball and a fan’s nachos re-entered the field together. Corey Seager’s nacho ball was ruled a home run and cut the Phillies’ lead to 3-2. 

The Phillies took a three-run lead in the bottom of the eighth inning. Alex Bohm doubled on a line drive to Ezequiel Duran. Kyle Schwarber scored to make it a 4-2 game. J.T. Realmuto went to third base. Bryson Stott was out on a sacrifice fly to Duran. Realmuto scored to extend the Phillies’ lead to 5-2. Bohm went to third base with two outs. 

The Rangers lost to the Phillies 5-2 after nine innings. Corey Seager went 1-for-5 for Texas with one home run, RBI, and four strikeouts. And, for Philadelphia, Jose Alvarado pitched one inning and gave up one hit and two strikeouts.

The Rangers struck first but ultimately dropped a 5-2 decision to the Phillies in the series opener. Texas fell to 24-25, while Philadelphia improved to 35-14. 

Wednesday, May 22 

Rangers pitcher Dane Dunning pitched 3 1/3 innings and gave up four hits, three earned runs, one walk, and four strikeouts. Meanwhile, Phillies pitcher Taijuan Walker pitched 4 2/3 innings and gave up six hits, three earned runs, four walks, and five strikeouts.

Before Wednesday’s game, Texas celebrated Ezequiel Duran’s 25th birthday, activated Dane Dunning from the 15-day injured list, and optioned Cole Winn to the Triple-A’s Round Rock Express. The Rangers opened the scoring in the top of the first inning. Josh Smith singled on a ground ball to Nick Castellanos. Marcus Semien scored for an early 1-0 lead. Corey Seager went to third base. The Rangers took a two-run lead in the top of the second inning. Leodys Taveras homered on a fly ball to center field to make it a 2-0 game. 

The Phillies tied the game at two apiece in the bottom of the second inning. Brandon Marsh singled on a line drive to Derek Hill. Alec Bohm scored to cut the Rangers’ lead to 2-1. Nick Castellanos went to third base. Marsh was later picked off and caught stealing second base. Castellanos scored to tie the game 2-2. Marsh went to second base after a throwing error by Dane Dunning. 

The Phillies took a one-run lead in the bottom of the third inning. J.T. Realmuto homered on a fly ball to left field to make it a 3-2 game. The Phillies took a four-run lead in the bottom of the fourth inning. Edmundo Sosa homered on a fly ball to right center field. Nick Castellanos and Brandon Marsh scored to make it a 6-2 game. The Rangers cut the Phillies’ lead in half in the top of the fifth inning. Josh Smith singled on a ground ball to Johan Rojas. Marcus Semien scored to cut the Phillies’ lead to 6-3. Adolis Garcia went to third base. 

The Phillies reached a double-digit plateau in the bottom of the sixth inning. J.T. Realmuto singled on a sharp line drive to Robbie Grossman. Nick Castellanos and Johan Rojas scored to extend the Phillies’ lead to 8-3. Kyle Schwarber went to second base. Alec Bohm doubled on a fly ball to Leody Taveras. Schwarber and Realmuto scored to expand the Phillies’ lead to 10-3. Bryce Harper went to third base. 

The Rangers inched closer to the Phillies in the top of the seventh inning. Corey Seager homered on a fly ball to left center field to reduce the Phillies’ lead to 10-4. The Phillies sealed the scoring in the bottom of the eighth inning. Bryce Harper homered on a fly ball to right field for an 11-4 lead. The Rangers lost to the Phillies 11-4 after nine innings. Corey Seager went 2-for-3 for Texas with one home run, one RBI, and two walks. And, for Philadelphia, Jose Ruiz pitched one inning.