The rebuild continues. Closer Keona Kela was dealt to the Pittsburgh Pirates for a minor league pitcher and a player to be named later.

Baseball can be cruel. Baseball can be wonderful.

Bartolo Colon has made four attempts to notch career win 246, which would make him the winningest pitcher in Latin American history, and maybe then call it a career and ride off into the sunset on a horse. A really big, back-reinforced horse.

He has lost all four attempts. It hasn’t been pretty.

Eddie Butler comes into last night’s game in the bottom of the sixth, with the score tied at five each, two runners on, and two outs.

He throws one pitch. He gets the out.

He gets the win.

A one-pitch win. Can’t get any more efficient than that.

Colon can’t buy a W. Butler bumps into one on the way to the bathroom.

It helped that his team score two runs in the top of the seventh, then padded that lead with one in the eighth and one in the ninth.

And before you knew it, the Rangers have a four-game winning streak to close out what had been a brutal July on a high note.

They head into today’s game without their closer Keona Kela, who was dealt to Pittsburgh, with Bartolo Colon on the mound, who seems to be out of gas and might never get that elusive one more win, and, as of now, with Adrian Beltre still on their roster.

The bell rings at 3:00. Then it’s pencils down, sort it out, see who’s left, and go from there.

*****
TODAY’S GAME:

Bartolo Colon (5-9, 5.02) vs. Zack Godley (11-6, 4.73)
Game time: 8:40

The Rangers have never hit against Godley.
How the Diamondbacks hit against Colon.