In a rain-soaked showdown at Comerica Park, the Texas Rangers clawed their way back to .500 with a gritty 5-4 victory over the Detroit Tigers on Friday night. Danny Janssen launched a solo homer, and Josh Jung delivered a clutch two-RBI performance to lead the charge.
The Rangers (16-16) had dropped three of their last four, but this win breathes new life into their season. Meanwhile, the Tigers (16-17) continue to struggle, losing five of their last seven games.
The game was a back-and-forth battle, with Texas taking control in the eighth inning. After the Tigers tied it at 4-4, the Rangers struck back quickly. Jake Burger and Alejandro Osuna ripped back-to-back doubles off Burch Smith (0-1), pushing the go-ahead run across the plate.
Jakob Junis shut down the Tigers in the eighth, and Jacob Latz slammed the door in the ninth for his third save of the season. Former Tiger Tyler Alexander (1-0) earned the win in relief, adding a touch of drama against his old team.
Neither starter factored into the decision. MacKenzie Gore battled through 3 2/3 innings, allowing three runs, while Detroit’s Jack Flaherty matched him in innings but gave up four runs.
The Rangers jumped out early, with Jung delivering a two-out RBI single in the first inning for a 1-0 lead. In the third, Janssen launched a towering homer over the Tigers’ bullpen in left field, igniting the Texas dugout. Flaherty then lost the strike zone, walking three consecutive hitters. Jung capitalized again with an RBI single to left, scoring Brandon Nimmo, and Joc Pederson added a sacrifice fly to make it 4-0.
The Tigers roared back in the fourth, loading the bases with two outs. Wenceel Perez ripped a two-run single to left, and Hao-Yu Lee followed with a looping single into right-center, cutting the lead to 4-3. Riley Greene tied the game in the fifth, beating out a double-play attempt to allow Kerry Carpenter to score from third.
In a concerning note for the Rangers, Nimmo exited the game in the bottom of the third with right hamstring tightness—the second straight game he has left early with the same issue.
Looking ahead, the Tigers will send right-hander Keider Montero (1-2, 4.00 ERA) to the mound on Saturday night, while the Rangers counter with righty Kumar Rocker (1-2, 3.38). It’s a matchup that could swing momentum in this tightly contested series.