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Rangers Fall 9-4 to Guardians as Gore Takes Loss

MacKenzie Gore earned the loss after allowing five earned runs in five innings. The Texas Rangers were defeated by the Cleveland Guardians, 9-4, at Progressive Field on Wednesday.

Una Vargas

July 2, 20262 min read

MLBFinal
Texas Rangers4
Cleveland Guardians9

July 1, 2026

Rangers Offense Stalls Against Guardians Pitching

The Texas Rangers fell short in their Wednesday matchup against the Cleveland Guardians, ending with a 9-4 final score at Progressive Field. The loss drops the Rangers to a 44-43 record, while Cleveland improves to 45-42.

MacKenzie Gore started for Texas, taking the loss with a record of 5-7. He pitched 5.0 innings, allowing 7 hits and 5 earned runs while striking out 7 batters. Gore struggled with control, issuing 1 walk. After Gore’s exit, Cole Winn entered for 1.0 inning, giving up 2 hits and 2 earned runs. Winston Santos closed out the Rangers' pitching effort, working 2.0 innings and allowing 2 hits, 2 earned runs, 1 walk, and recording 1 strikeout.

Guardians’ Attack Explodes in Second Inning

Cleveland’s offense generated significant momentum early, particularly in the second inning. The scoring began when Hedges hit a sacrifice bunt, allowing Rocchio to score and advancing Arias to second. Arias then scored on a wild pitch by Gore, with Schneemann also advancing to second and Hedges to third on subsequent wild pitches. The inning culminated with Fry hitting a home run to right center, measuring 380 feet. The blast scored Hedges and Schneemann, turning the game into a 5-0 lead for the home team.

Guardians Extend Lead in Later Innings

Cleveland added insurance runs in the third inning when Higashioka walked, allowing Foscue to score. A challenge by the Rangers regarding the call was upheld. The Guardians extended their advantage in the sixth inning. Díaz grounded out to second, but Higashioka scored. Lopez then doubled to left field, bringing Osuna home. In the seventh, DeLauter singled to right, scoring Kwan. Hoskins walked, and DeLauter scored on a wild pitch by Santos.

Power Surge in the Eighth

The Rangers managed to put runs on the board in the eighth inning. Díaz hit a home run to left center, 402 feet, making the score 7-4. However, Cleveland answered immediately. Hedges hit a home run to left center, 400 feet, scoring Watson and pushing the final margin to 9-4.

Cleveland’s pitching staff held the Rangers to 4 total runs. Joey Cantillo earned the win (7-3) after pitching 5.0 innings with 3 hits, 2 earned runs, 5 walks, and 4 strikeouts. Colin Holderman pitched 1.0 inning, allowing 3 hits and 1 earned run. Hunter Gaddis and Tim Herrin recorded holds, with Gaddis pitching 0.1 innings and Herrin 0.2 innings, both allowing no earned runs. Erik Sabrowski pitched 1.0 inning, allowing 1 hit and 1 earned run with 2 strikeouts. Matt Festa closed the game with 1.0 scoreless inning, recording no hits, walks, or earned runs.

The game drew an attendance of 20,141 spectators.

Sources

https://www.espn.com/mlb/game/_/gameId/401815984

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Una Vargas

Una Vargas covers Plano high school and area college sports.

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