Nathaniel Lowe delivered the go-ahead, two-run single with two outs in the ninth inning Monday night for the visiting Texas Rangers, who came back to edge the New York Mets 4-3 in the opener of a three-game series.
The Rangers improved to 2-9 since opening August on a 12-2 run. The Mets have lost five of six.
In the ninth inning, New York’s Trevor Gott (0-4) allowed a leadoff single to Jonah Heim before pinch runner Josh H. Smith raced to third on Ezequiel Duran’s double. Leody Taveras and Marcus Semien struck out before Corey Seager was intentionally walked to bring up Lowe, who singled to right.
The rally made a winner of Martin Perez (0-2), who whiffed two in two scoreless innings. Jose Leclerc threw a hitless ninth to record his second save.
Texas starter Jon Gray allowed three runs on four hits and one walk while striking out nine over six innings.
Adolis Garcia (double) and Robbie Grossman (fielder’s choice) had RBIs in the sixth and seventh, respectively, for the Rangers. Seager recorded three hits.
Brandon Nimmo hit a two-run homer in the third and DJ Stewart hit a solo shot in the fifth for the Mets.
Tylor Megill gave up one run on five hits and one walk while striking out eight over six innings.
Gray opened by fanning four over two perfect innings before Omar Narvaez singled leading off the third. Two outs later, Nimmo homered well beyond the right field fence.
Stewart went deep leading off the fifth, and Gray wriggled out of a two-on, two-out jam later in the frame by retiring Francisco Lindor on a grounder to short.
The Rangers didn’t get a runner beyond first base against Megill before building a run in the sixth. Semien led off with a double and stayed there when Seager beat out an infield single to third base. Lowe grounded into a double play before Semien trotted home on Garcia’s double that split the right-center-field gap.
Seager doubled with one out in the eighth before Lowe and Garcia drew consecutive walks against Brooks Raley and Sam Coonrod, respectively. Seager came home when Garcia was forced on Grossman’s grounder to second.
—Field Level Media
