Elephant Rumblings: Rangers on verge of first World Series Championship win

Happy Wednesday, Athletics Nation!

Rangers second baseman Marcus Semien stepped up and broke out of his postseason slump yesterday when his team needed him most. With star outfielder Adolis Garcia out due to an oblique strain suffered in Monday’s 3-1 Ranger victory, Semien came alive at the plate to put Game 4 of the 2023 World Series out of the Diamondbacks’ reach early on.

The D-backs rallied with six runs late in the game, but it was too little, too late. The Rangers’ 11-7 win puts them tantalizingly close to their first World Series win. Ahead three games to one, Texas has a shot at becoming MLB champs in Phoenix tonight.

Marcus put a crooked number on the scoreboard in the second inning with a two-run triple, and followed it up in the third with this three-run homer.

Without a doubt, that blast dampened the spirits of D-backs players and fans alike. Semien entered the game with just 3 RBI through 15 games this postseason, but he nearly tripled that number yesterday, bringing five runs home in his first two at-bats.

The D-backs current situation is bleak: 3-1 World Series deficits have only been overcome six times in MLB history, and to complete a successful comeback, Arizona will need to be the first team to do it since the Cubs in 2016. But the NL Champions did manage to take two elimination games in Philly to get to this World Series, so they shouldn’t be counted out.

Tonight’s game is on Fox, with first pitch scheduled at 5:03 PM PT. Scheduled starters are Nathan Eovaldi for the Rangers versus Zac Gallen for the D-backs. If Arizona pulls out a win, the series will head back to Arlington and resume on Friday.

A’s Coverage:

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• MLB commissioner concerned by potential A’s stadium ballot question
• Nevada’s gamble on the A’s: A billionaire’s quest for greener pastures in a desert
• Why A’s Billy Beane loves Giants’ Zaidi-Melvin reunion across the bay ($)

MLB News & Interest:

• Rangers’ star duo leads them to cusp of 1st World Series title
• Rangers Remove Adolis Garcia, Max Scherzer From World Series Roster
• A Halloween tale of Rangers righty Jon Gray, a World Series star with a passion for the paranormal ($)
• Top 40 MLB free agents for 2023-24: Contract predictions, team fits for Ohtani, Yamamoto, more ($)
• 2023 Non-Tender Candidates
• Previewing Qualifying Offer Decisions: Position Players
• East Notes: Judge, Mets, Finnegan
• Padres Considering Phil Nevin, Benji Gil As Managerial Candidates
• Dodgers Outright Tyler Cyr
• Today in Baseball History

Best of X:

HBD TK!

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