Rangers Win In Seattle
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SEATTLE — Texas Rangers pitcher Aaron Poreda earned his first major league victory as a 22-year-old midseason call-up of the Chicago White Sox in June 2009.
Almost five years later, he earned his second.
The Texas reliever, now 27 years old and having gone through 2012 Tommy John surgery and several extended stints in the minor leagues, pitched two scoreless innings as the Rangers rallied for a 6-3 win over the Seattle Mariners on Saturday night.
“It’s amazing just to be put in the opportunity to get a win,” Poreda said after relieving starter Colby Lewis and shutting down the Seattle bats for two innings.
The Rangers’ bullpen pitched four scoreless innings after Texas (15-9) scored three runs off struggling Seattle starter Felix Hernandez in the fifth inning to rally back from an early 3-0 deficit.
“Everyone we brought in did their job,” Rangers manager Ron Washington said, “and we needed it because it gave us a chance to scratch and claw and get back in the game.”
Mitch Moreland’s sacrifice fly in the eighth gave the Rangers their first lead at 4-3 and Texas added two insurance runs off Joe Beimel in the ninth.
Texas closer Joakim Soria retired all three batters he faced in the bottom of the
ninth for his sixth save of the season. The Rangers have won nine of their past 11 games.
Seattle’s Charlie Furbush (0-2) took the loss, having beaned Prince Fielder, the only batter he faced.
Hernandez did not factor into the decision. He allowed three runs and five hits in six innings, walking three with four strikeouts. His performance included a rare bases-loaded walk to the Rangers’ No. 9 hitter during his disastrous fifth inning.
“I don’t even remember the last time I walked a guy on four straight pitches with the bases loaded,” Hernandez said. “I don’t even know why. … It was frustrating. It can’t happen.”
In a span of two nights, the Rangers have scored three runs on bases-loaded walks and three on wild pitches — the most recent of which was charged to Beimel in the ninth inning on Saturday.
Seattle (9-14) went through five relief pitchers in the loss.
Texas starter Colby Lewis went five innings, allowing three runs, three hits and three walks in his third game back from Tommy John surgery.
Leadoff home runs from Michael Saunders and Kyle Seager in the first and second innings, respectively, helped the Mariners jump out to a 2-0 lead before a Mike Zunino sacrifice fly in the fourth put Seattle ahead 3-0.
Moreland, Donnie Murphy and Leonys Martin opened the fifth against Hernandez with consecutive singles. Moreland scored the Rangers’ first run on a bases-loaded walk from Hernandez.
Michael Choice followed with an RBI single to cut the Seattle lead to 3-2, then Elvis Andrus tied the score 3-3 with a sacrifice fly — the first out recorded by Hernandez in the inning after six consecutive batters reached base.
Hernandez eventually got out of the jam but had already thrown 92 pitches through five innings.
“He just proved that he’s human,” Mariners manager Lloyd McClendon said. “It happens.”
