Rougned Odor hasn’t had too many good days in the last two years.

His downfall started in September of 2016; he slid all the way through the entire 2017 season; and he continued sinking through the first two and a half months of 2018.

It was a major league career on the brink.

He was a pigheaded hitter who refused to change his losing approach. Then something happened. Maybe it was pride. Maybe one of his prize horses kicked him in the head and a sliver of sense got lodged into his brain.

Whatever it was, he decided he was ready to not suck anymore.

Since then, he he’s been the opposite of the Odor he was for so long.

After dropping to .186 at the end of May, Odor has seen his average on a steady rise. He hit .259 in June. And has been on fire in July, hitting .327 with a .417 on-base percentage.

Yesterday was his best game since opening day of 2017 when he hit two home runs and mistakenly thought he was a power hitter, screwing up his through process for the entire season.

Odor singled in the first and was stranded there.

In the third, with two on and one out, he slapped a single to right to score the Rangers’ first run.

In the fifth, with a runner on third and one out, he hit a sacrifice fly to score the second run.

He led off the eighth with a home run to make it 3-0, having driven in all three runs.

In the end, the Rangers won 5-0 a day after getting embarrassed 16-3. Although one wonder whether the Indians just wanted to get out of the unbearable 111-degree afternoon as quickly as possible.

No matter, Odor is as hot as the Texas summer.

It’s been a long time coming.

A long long long long long long long long long long time.

*****
TODAY’S GAME:

Brett Anderson (1-2, 6.08) vs. Cole Hamels (5-8, 4.36)
Game time: 7:05

How the Athletics hit against Hamels.
How the Rangers hit against Anderson.