Slumping Texas Rangers Pitching Rotation Set for Twins Series

The Texas Rangers have their pitching rotation set for their four-game series with the Minnesota Twins, which starts on Thursday.

The Texas Rangers have set their pitching probables for their four-game series with the Minnesota Twins, which starts on Thursday.

The Rangers expect to start left-hander Andrew Heaney (9-6, 4.27) in the opener. He last started Friday against Milwaukee and threw 3 2/3 innings, giving up seven hits, three earned runs and one walk. He also struck out three. While Heaney has no-decisions in each of his last two starts, he is 4-0 with a 3.09 ERA in his last seven starts.

Right-hander Pablo López (9-6, 3.51) is slated to go the Rangers on Thursday. He won his last start on Friday against Pittsburgh, throwing six shutout innings, giving up six hits and two walks. He also struck out seven. He’s been on a tear of late, going 4-1 with a 2.53 ERA in his last seven starts. He’s claimed the victory in each of his last three starts.

Texas right-hander Dane Dunning (9-5, 3.19) is scheduled Friday. Dunning took the loss in his last start against Milwaukee on Saturday, throwing five innings. He gave up seven hits, three earned runs and one walk. He also struck out four. In his last seven starts, he is 1-3 with a 3.98 ERA and this will be his second start after a career-high 12 strikeouts against San Francisco on Aug. 13.

Right-hander Sonny Gray (6-6, 3.15) is on the hill Friday for the Twins. He lost his last start against Pittsburgh on Saturday, He went 6 2/3 innings, giving up four hits, four earned runs and three walks. He also struck out seven. In his last seven games, he is 2-3 with a 3.74 ERA but has 46 strikeouts in that span.

The Rangers go to ace right-hander Max Scherzer (12-5, 3.77) on Saturday. He took his first loss with Texas on Sunday against Milwaukee, going just 3 2/3 innings and giving up three hits, three earned runs and four walks. He also struck out four. He is 3-1 in his first four starts for the Rangers.

The Twins have not announced their pitching probable for Saturday.

Jordan Montgomery (8-10, 3.12) is set to start on Sunday. The left-hander took a no-decision on Monday against Arizona. He threw eight innings of shutout ball while allowing four hits and a walk. He also struck out six. He is now 2-2 in his first four starts with the Rangers.

The Twins have not announced their pitching probable for Sunday.

All four games start at different time: Thursday (6:10 p.m.), Friday (7:10 p.m.), Saturday (6:15 p.m.) and Sunday’s finale (1:10 p.m.).

After the Minnesota series, the Rangers depart for New York to face the Mets in a three-game series that starts Monday.

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