What’s better than a Sunday afternoon of baseball? A Sunday afternoon with two Rangers games.
A Sunday afternoon in which the Rangers collected a combined twenty-one hits.
A Sunday afternoon in which thirty-six different Rangers positions players saw action, as well as eleven different pitchers. For most of these players, this is the first and only time they will wear a Rangers uniform. It was a day to dream.
A Sunday afternoon in which every Rangers starter in the Padres game collected at least one hit.
A Sunday afternoon in which Joey Gallo bunted for a single—a glorious bunt single. (No need to outlaw shifts, just outsmart them).
A Sunday afternoon in which Lance Lynn made his Texas Rangers debut and brought with him an attitude that he’s here to pitch, not to be taken out of games. He told mlb.com’s Dave Sessions, “If I start the inning, I want to finish it. That’s the way I’m built.” In fact, after Lynn walked a batter to load the bases, Chris Woodward left the dugout to remove him. Lynn sent him back, saying he wanted one more batter. Of course, that batter doubled and that drove Lynn out of the game, but the point was made. Let me pitch.
This is what makes spring training games so enjoyable. There’s nothing at stake as far as the outcome is concerned so they just go out and have fun. And play.
And sometimes, they play two.