A’s use walk-off rally to beat Rangers, clinch first home series win

Jacob Wilson singled in Luis Urias with two outs in the bottom of the ninth to give the Athletics a 4-3 walk-off victory over the Texas Rangers in the rubber match of their three-game series in West Sacramento, Calif.

The A’s trailed the Rangers 3-2 entering the ninth against reliever Luke Jackson (0-2). Max Schuemann walked with one out and then came all the way around to score on a single by Luis Urias when the ball bounced off the top of the glove of center fielder Leody Taveras for an error. One out later, Wilson lined the game-winning single to center to drive in Urias from second base.

It marked the first home series victory in four tries for the Athletics in their new temporary home. Tyler Soderstrom went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs, Gio Urshela added three hits and Grant Holman (2-0) picked up the win with two innings of hitless relief for the A’s.

Josh Jung, Jonah Heim and Taveras each hit solo home runs, and Wyatt Langford had three hits for Texas.

The Athletics took a 2-0 lead in the third inning on a two-out double into the gap in right-center by Soderstrom. The line drive drove in Lawrence Butler, who got a gift double when the left fielder Langford lost his routine fly ball in the lights, and Wilson, who reached on a fielder’s choice.

The Rangers then hit all three solo homers off A’s starter J.T. Ginn in the fourth inning to take a 3-2 lead.

Jung started the comeback with a towering 414-foot drive to left-center, and Heim followed with his fourth homer of the season, a line drive into the berm in right. One out later, Taveras lined his first homer of the season into the bullpen in right-center.

Texas loaded the bases after Taveras’ home run on a walk by Josh Smith, an infield single by Langford and a walk to Joc Pederson. But reliever Hogan Harris got out of the inning by getting Adolis Garcia to ground out to third.