Inside The Rangers

Texas Rangers Win First Series In Nearly A Month On Wyatt Langford's Walk-Off

The Texas Rangers were stuck on three hits through the first eight innings but added three more in the ninth, including Wyatt Langford's walk-off single.

Stefan Stevenson

Aug 21, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas Rangers left fielder Wyatt Langford (36) and relief pitcher Kirby Yates (39) and second baseman Marcus Semien (2) and first baseman Nathaniel Lowe (30) celebrate after Langford drives in the game winning run by pinch runner Ezequiel Duran (not pictured) against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the ninth inning at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 21, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas Rangers left fielder Wyatt Langford (36) and relief pitcher Kirby Yates (39) and second baseman Marcus Semien (2) and first baseman Nathaniel Lowe (30) celebrate after Langford drives in the game winning run by pinch runner Ezequiel Duran (not pictured) against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the ninth inning at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports / Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
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ARLINGTON — Wyatt Langford singled up the middle to score Ezequiel Duran with two outs in the bottom of the ninth as the Texas Rangers beat the Pittsburgh Pirates with a 1-0 walk-off win Wednesday afternoon.

It's the Rangers first series win since July 25 when they swept the historically bad Chicago White Sox at Globe Life Field. They had lost their seven previous series.

"Tough day for [the offense], but they found a way to get a run in the end," Rangers manager Bruce Bochy told Bally Sports Southwest. "You keep fighting. That's all you can do. hopefully, the day off will help get these bats going, because that's not going to work with the way we've been swinging it the past couple of days."

Texas entered the ninth with three hits, all singles, in a scoreless game, and added three more in the ninth. Jonah Heim led off with an infield single to second and was replaced by pinch-runner Ezequiel Duran. Adolis García followed with a single to left. Duran moved to third on Nathaniel Lowe's sharp lineout to right field, and García moved up to second on a steal. After Josh Jung struck out, Langford muscled a 2-1curveball past the shortstop for the win.

Three thoughts from Wednesday's game:

1. Andrew Heaney Bounce Back

Andrew Heaney held the Pirates scoreless over five innings but did not figure in the decision on Wednesday afternoon.
Aug 21, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas Rangers starting pitcher Andrew Heaney (44) pitches against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the first inning at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports / Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Andrew Heaney bounced back after a couple of subpar starts with five scoreless innings against the Pirates. Heaney held Pittsburgh to five hits, a walk, and a hit batter. His eighth and final strikeout came after he loaded the bases after hitting a batter. He got Connor Joe swinging on a three pitches, including the final strike on a 92 mph four-seam fastball up and out of the zone.

2. Walk-Off Wyatt

Wyatt Langford celebrates his walk-off single in the ninth, which scored Ezequiel Duran (background) with the winning run.
Aug 21, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas Rangers left fielder Wyatt Langford (36) celebrates after driving in the game winning run by pinch runner Ezequiel Duran (20) against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the ninth inning at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports / Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Rookie Wyatt Langford collected his second walk-off hit in 2024. He's the first Rangers rookie to record mutliple walk-off plate appearances since
Adolis García in 2021. Langford also had a walk-off single against the White Sox on July 22. That was the last series the Rangers won until Wednesday. Langford was 2 for 3 with a walk and RBI.

3. Up Next

The Rangers start a three-game series against former teammate Austin Hedges and the Cleveland Guardians on Friday.
May 15, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Cleveland Guardians catcher Austin Hedges (27) comes off the field in the middle of the first inning against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Dieb-USA TODAY Sports / Andrew Dieb-USA TODAY Sports

The Rangers are off Thursday before starting a weekend series against the Guardians in Cleveland at 6:10 p.m. Friday at Progressive Field. The probable pitching matchups: Friday: RHP Nathan Eovaldi vs. RHP Tanner Bibee; Saturday: RHP Jon Gray vs. RHP Ben Lively; Sunday: LHP Cody Bradford vs. LHP Matt Boyd
Texas is off on Monday before finishing the road trip with a three-game series in Chicago.

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Stefan Stevenson
STEFAN STEVENSON

Stefan Stevenson worked as a journalist and editor at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram for 25 years, covering sports, concerts, and general news. His beats have included the Dallas Cowboys, the Texas Rangers, and Texas Christian University football.

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