Gray Has Best Start for Texas Rangers on Young Season, Still Loses

Texas Rangers starter Jon Gray threw a strong game, but the offense fell silent resulting in the team's first loss of the 2023 MLB season.

Kade Kistner | Apr 4, 2023

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ARLINGTON, Texas - The Texas Rangers (3-1) suffered their first setback of the young 2023 MLB season Monday night against the Baltimore Orioles at Globe Life Field.

Jon Gray took the mound and turned in the best performance of any Texas starter this season. Gray pitched 6 1/3 innings of two-run baseball, both runs coming off of solo home runs. He also struck out seven in a 2-0 shutout loss.

Both long balls were off mistake pitches by Gray.

"I felt like there were a handful of weak pitches that cost us a couple of runs. ... They were mistake pitches by me." Gray said. "They put really good swings on them, but the plan I had, I really didn't follow it. When I get behind like that I want to put a little more on my fastball, but today I really didn't feel like I could. It kind of ended up being a meatball in the middle of the plate."

But as manager Bruce Bochy said, two solo home runs won't usually beat you, but on Monday they did. Despite the solid outing, Gray was still quick to downplay the success.

"I didn't really feel that great for game No. 1," he said. "Just kind of a downer, but to just keep us end there and fight to the end is what I wanted."

Texas is in a fortunate position to have a pitcher like Gray as its fourth starter. It speaks to the incredible depth and talent of this new-look rotation.

Unfortunately for Gray, the Texas offense went flat. After scoring 29 runs in the first three games, the Rangers managed just a single hit – a single from Josh Jung in the second inning.

However, the evening was overshadowed by the loss of Josh Smith after he took an 89-mph sinker to his head. It was a scary moment as he dropped to the ground and was quickly attended to by the Rangers medical staff.

Smith was able to walk off the field under his own power before being taken to a local area hospital. Bochy said after the game that Smith had undergone CT scans that came back "clean."

Texas will look to get back on track Tuesday in the second of three games with the Orioles. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. CT.

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Published Apr 4, 2023

KADE KISTNER

Kade Kistner is the publisher and beat writer for Sports Illustrated's Inside the Phillies, Cubs and Astros. He is also an editor for Inside the Rangers. An alumnus of Tulane University, Kade graduated in 2017 with a degree in Latin American Studies and a minor in Spanish. Upon graduation, Kade commissioned into the United States Navy and attended Naval Flight School in Pensacola, Fl. He served as a Naval Aviator and was stationed in Jacksonville, Fl. During his time in school and the Navy, Kade began covering the MLB and NFL with USA Today, SB Nation, and Sports Illustrated. Kade covered the New Orleans Saints, Texas Rangers, and numerous other teams within the Sports Illustrated network before launching Inside the Phillies, Inside the Astros, and Inside the Cubs. You can follow him on Twitter at @KadeKistner, or if you have any questions or comments he can be reached via email at kwkistner@gmail.com.