DETROIT -- In his final at-bat, Shin-Soo Choo hit an infield single off reliever Victor Alcantara in the ninth inning in Sunday's 3-0 win over the Tigers to extend his on-base streak to 47 games, setting a new Rangers single-season mark.
"These kinds of records, it's a gift," Choo said. "God gave me a gift. The baseball gods gave me a gift."
After keeping the streak alive with a leadoff home run and double the last two games, Choo struggled at the plate Sunday and went to the plate 0-for-4 with two outs in the top of the ninth. After taking a called strike, Choo swung at an inside changeup and tapped it toward third baseman Jeimer Candelario. Fully healthy, it was the kind of ball that Choo would typically be able to leg out with relative ease. But he's been dealing with discomfort in his right quadriceps, so Choo hobbled all the way to first. Fortunately for him, Candelario was playing deep enough that there was no play once he fielded the ball.
Julio Franco previously held the franchise record at 46 games, a feat he accomplished during the 1993 season.
"We pull so hard for this guy," said manager Jeff Banister, who watched from the clubhouse after being ejected in the second inning. "For him to be able to get it done on his last at bat, it was pretty incredible to keep the streak alive. It was something to watch, fun to be part of, and something to look forward to every day."
After hitting into a double play to end the seventh, Choo was not guaranteed another at-bat. Two walks and single in the eighth, as well as a one-out hit from Ronald Guzman in the ninth, gave Choo a final chance.
"I still believed I would get another at-bat," Choo said. "I know I made the last out in the seventh inning, but I believe in our lineup, so I thought I had a good chance to get another at-bat."

Leading up to this milestone, Banister said that streaks of this magnitude involve numerous factors.
"These types of things, they take on a life of their own, too," Banister said. "He's the guy that's in the middle of it, but he's also got 24 other players and coaching staff and training staff and our entire organization rooting for him every time he gets an opportunity to go to the plate."
A 1-for-5 performance at the plate on Sunday was atypical for Choo during this streak. Over the course of these 47 games, Choo is hitting .339 (61-for-180) with 41 walks.