Danny Jansen hit a three-run homer for one of his three hits as the Texas Rangers beat the host Baltimore Orioles 8-5 on Tuesday night.
Ezequiel Duran and Corey Seager also homered for the Rangers, who have won four in a row and will go for a three-game series sweep Wednesday afternoon. Brandon Nimmo and Wyatt Langford joined Seager in collecting two hits apiece.
Pete Alonso, the Orioles’ highly acclaimed free agent signee, smacked his first home run with his new team. Taylor Ward had four hits from Baltimore’s leadoff position, and he and Gunnar Henderson each produced a two-run double.
Rangers starter Jacob deGrom was strong through three innings, but he was charged with three runs on six hits in 4 2/3 innings in his rescheduled start. He struck out seven without issuing a walk. Neck stiffness delayed his season debut from the weekend.
Cole Winn (1-0) picked up his first major league victory with 1 1/3 innings of shutout relief.
Orioles starter Zach Eflin made it through 3 2/3 innings, giving up one run on four hits with two walks and seven strikeouts. Elfin left after throwing a curveball in the fourth, with manager Craig Albernaz and a trainer checking on him on the mound before he departed.
Yennier Cano (0-1) took the loss, allowing one run in the sixth.
Although the first two batters reached in the bottom of the ninth and both later scored on Ward’s two-out double, the Orioles didn’t have other serious threats late in the game.
The Rangers broke a 3-3 tie with Nimmo’s two-out RBI single in the sixth inning. Jansen’s big blast came in the seventh, and Seager went deep leading off the ninth. It marked Jansen’s first homer in three games in a Texas uniform.
Duran’s first homer of the season came as the leadoff batter in the third inning to open the scoring. Alonso led off the bottom of the fourth with a 400-foot blast to center, tying the score.
Langford’s RBI triple and Seager’s run-scoring single pushed the Rangers ahead 3-1 in the fifth. Henderson pulled the Orioles even in the bottom of the inning with a two-run double that ended deGrom’s outing.
