Foscue's Blast Ignites Rangers' Five-Run Eighth, Rout Angels 8-3

Justin Foscue went 2-for-2 with a home run, 2 RBI, and 2 runs scored as Texas turned a one-run deficit into an 8-3 blowout over Los Angeles. The story of the night was a seventh-inning equalizer that cracked the dam open and an eighth inning that buried the Angels for good.

The Angels looked like they had the right idea early. Jorge Soler doubled to left to score Schanuel in the first, and Josh Lowe followed with a single to center that scored Soler — LAA 2, TEX 0 before Texas had even settled in. The Rangers answered immediately in the second when Nicky Lopez singled to left, scoring both Carter and Osuna to knot it at 2. That's where it stayed for a long time, with Jacob deGrom working through 5.0 innings, allowing 5 hits and 2 earned runs while striking out 7, and Jose Soriano matching the moment for Los Angeles with 6.0 innings of 2-hit, 4-strikeout ball. Neither team could pull away — until the seventh.

Angels grabbed the lead back when Meckler singled to left to score Peraza, making it LAA 3, TEX 2. That lead lasted approximately one at-bat. Foscue answered with a 387-foot home run to left that tied the game at 3, and the win probability swung from 40% to 63% in Texas's favor on that single swing. It was the hinge point of the entire game — the moment Los Angeles's grip slipped and didn't come back.

The eighth inning was a demolition. Duran singled to left to score Smith and push Burger to third — TEX 4. Foscue then singled to left again, scoring Burger and moving Duran to second — TEX 5. Then Alejandro Osuna ended any remaining suspense with a 364-foot homer to right that scored both Duran and Foscue, pushing the final to 8-3. Osuna finished 1-for-3 with 3 RBI and 2 runs scored. Foscue, who went a perfect 2-for-2, looks like the kind of player who shows up when the game is on the line — two clutch hits, both with runners in scoring position, both in the game's decisive stretch. Texas's bullpen did its part too: Peyton Gray and Tyler Alexander each threw a scoreless inning, combining for four strikeouts on two hits allowed. The Rangers appear to be hitting their stride at exactly the right point in the season.