Texas Rangers starting pitcher Andrew Heaney throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/LM Otero)
Andrew Heaney snapped an eight-start winless streak as the Texas Rangers took an early five-run lead and beat the Los Angeles Angels 7-4 on Sunday.
Heaney (5-13), one short of the major league lead in losses, allowed four runs, three earned, on three hits in six-plus innings to win for the first time since July 21. He was backed by home runs from Marcus Semien, Nathaniel Lowe and Ezequiel Duran.
It was rare run support for Heaney. The 33-year-old left-hander received two runs or fewer of support in his previous seven starts and 18 of his 27 this season before Sunday. His 3.55 average run support as a starter was fourth lowest in the American League.
“Very happy about that. Happy for those guys,” Heaney said. “I know it’s not intentional. I know those guys aren’t having a meeting about, ‘Hey, don’t forget. Heaney’s on the mound. Let’s not support him.’ I know it’s been trying for them.”
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Kirby Yates earned his 29th save in 30 chances after David Robertson left runners on the corners in the eighth with a one-run lead.
The Rangers won three of four games against the Angels to match a season-best four consecutive series won, the other time happening April 26-May 8. The defending World Series champions (70-74) have climbed within four games of .500 for the first time since July 30.
Texas chased 20-year-old right-hander Caden Dana (1-1) 11 batters into his second major league start. Dana, who was brought up from Double-A Rocket City on Aug. 30, gave up five runs on seven hits, including three home runs, and left with the bases loaded with none out in the second inning.
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Ryan Zeferjahn followed Dana and shut down Texas by striking out Wyatt Langford and getting Adolis García to ground into a double play.
Semien hit Dana’s first pitch for his sixth leadoff homer this season and 30th of his career.
“Marcus led off a home run, and then it was pow, pow, pow after that,” Angels manager Ron Washington said of Dana, one of seven Angels rookies to play on Sunday. “Just wasn’t his day.”
Duran’s homer was his third of the season, the first since June 11.
“Threw stuff over the middle. Happened too many times,” said Dana, an 11th-round draftee in 2022.
Heaney retired Los Angeles’ first nine batters before Taylor Ward led off the fourth with a walk, Zach Neto doubled down the left-field line and Charles Leblanc, recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake on Sept. 1 for the second time this season, pulled a 3-2 slider down the left-field line for his first Angels homer.
The Angels (59-84) pulled within 5-4 in the seventh on Michael Stefanic’s sacrifice fly off José Leclerc to score Matt Thaiss. Thaiss reached on a high fly ball down the left-field line off Heaney that was dropped by Langford into foul territory and ruled foul. Los Angeles successfully challenged that Langford stood in fair territory when he dropped it, and Thaiss was awarded second base.
Texas scored two unearned runs in the eighth on Travis Jankowski’s two-out single to right field that was overrun by Jordyn Adams.
UP NEXT
Angels: LHP Reid Detmers (3-6, 5.87 ERA) will open a three-game series at Minnesota on Monday against Twins RHP David Festa (2-5, 4.75).
Rangers: RHP Nathan Eovaldi (11-7. 3.55) will face Diamondbacks RHP Zac Gallen (11-6, 3.69) on Tuesday in a rematch of Texas’ most recent appearance at Arizona, the clinching game of last year’s World Series.
