Texas Rangers made significant playoff push, but now on 7-game slide with no realistic shot

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — The Texas Rangers made a significant push for a playoff spot even without Corey Seager, Marcus Semien and Nathan Eovaldi. They had a 13-3 span with a bunch of young fill-in players and a pair of six-game winning streaks to get within two games of the AL West lead.

Just over a week later, the Rangers are in a seven-game losing streak that is their longest of the season and now have no realistic chance of playing in October.

Texas (79-77) went into an off day Monday with six games left and were five games behind Houston (84-72) and Cleveland, who were tied for the American League’s final wild-card spot.

“No doubt we have lost the momentum. … We’re in a funk,” manager Bruce Bochy said after a series-ending 4-2 home loss to Miami on Sunday.

“We put together a lot of good games over that stretch, and we put ourselves in such a good position,” pitcher Merrill Kelly said. “Just to turn around and kind of give it away, I think is the most frustrating part.”

Two years after winning its only World Series title and Bochy getting his fourth in his debut with Texas, there won’t be a Giants-like rebound. San Francisco twice under Bochy won the World Series, missed the playoffs the following season and then came back the next year to win another championship. The Rangers were 78-84 last season.

Any chance for a playoff spot?

The Rangers would have to finish the regular season with another six-game winning streak and still get a lot of improbable results to make this postseason.

Their final three-game home series starts Tuesday against Minnesota. They finish with three games at Cleveland, after the Guardians host Detroit (85-71) in a three-game series with a chance to take over the AL Central lead.

Houston, just swept in three games by AL West-leading Seattle, would have to lose its remaining six games against the Athletics and the Los Angeles Angels. Texas would also need either Cleveland or Detroit to sweep that series, or the Tigers to take two out of three games. If the Guardians win two out of three, both teams would have 86 wins, one more than possible for Texas.

Houston again a problem

On the way to the World Series title two years ago, the Rangers went into the postseason as the wild card after the Astros matched them for the AL West lead on the last day of the regular season. Houston had the tiebreaker then, and does again this year after a three-game sweep of the Rangers last week to take the season series again.

“Houston, obviously, is the big one,” said Kelly, the trade deadline acquisition from Arizona. “That was the kind of the make-or-break series for us. … The Houston series was kind of the telling point of the way we were going to end up.”

That came the week after the Rangers had swept a three-game series against Milwaukee, which has the best record in the majors.

Missing Rangers

Texas has been without its half-billion dollar middle infield since late August.

Semien has missed 27 games since fouling a pitch off his left foot Aug. 22, a week before Seager had an appendectomy and has been out 21 games. Both were hopeful of playing again to wrap up their fourth season in Texas, but that may not be necessary.

“Where we’re at will play a part in this,” Bochy said.

Seager signed a $325 million, 10-year deal, and Semien got $175 million for seven years.

Eovaldi was 11-3 with a career-best 1.73 ERA over his 14 MLB seasons before getting shut down because of a rotator cuff stain in late August.

Outfielder Evan Carter broke his right wrist when hit by a pitch in the same game Semien got hurt. Right fielder Adolis García missed 19 games during two IL stints since mid-August, and the slugger has still been limited by a quad strain since reinstated last week.

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