WEST SACRAMENTO -- One pitch, one swing, one decision can change the course of a baseball game. That’s no secret.
For the Rangers on Wednesday night, manager Skip Schumaker felt like that decision fell on him.
The Rangers fell, 6-5, to the A’s at Sutter Health Park. A pitch could have changed it, like any one of starting pitcher Kumar Rocker’s walks (4) or the hit by pitch in the second inning -- two of which came around to score. Or maybe a swing, like catcher Danny Jansen grounding into a double play with the bases loaded in the top half of the second.
The Rangers and A’s were tied for much of the night as Rocker allowed two runs in 4 ⅔ innings, and Corey Seager’s two-run homer in the third got Texas on the board. In the sixth, reliever Jalen Beeks allowed a leadoff single to Lawrence Butler before getting two quick outs as the lineup turned over.
Schumaker turned to Cole Winn, who was coming off a 2025 in which he posted a 1.51 ERA across 41 2/3 innings and still had zeros next to his name for ‘26.
Facing A’s catcher Shea Langeliers, Winn got behind early before getting him to chase a slider well below the zone. Then, he attacked with a sinker up and in. Langeliers sent it 467 feet, almost over the clubhouse at Sutter Health Park.
“I think this game is solely on me,” Schumaker said. “I made a bad strategy move in the middle of the game, and I put this one solely on me. The offense did their job -- came back late with the big home run from [Jake] Burger. I put Cole [Winn] in a bad situation, and it ultimately cost us the game, in my opinion. So this one's on me.”
Schumaker had Winn -- who had not allowed a run before Wednesday -- ready to face Langeliers. Carlos Cortes -- batting behind him -- is a left-handed hitter, and the A’s only had right-handed bats on their bench. If Beeks remained in the game, A’s manager Mark Kotsay had a loaded bench for that situation as well.
“The strategy move should have been that I walk Langeliers and make them make the move from the bench for Cortes -- if they would or not, I have no idea,” Schumaker further explained. “Even if they leave Cortes in, I probably still go to Winn. That's not up to them, that's up to me. That should have been my move. I didn't make the move difficult. I pitched to one of their best hitters. It’s my responsibility to put our guys in the best position to succeed, and I did not do that tonight. So that's why I think it's on me.”
Winn had not allowed a run before today, and in 2025, opposing right-handed batters hit just .114 against him. It’s easy to see the thought process in allowing him to face Langeliers.
But since 2022, the A’s catcher has 31 RBIs against Texas, good for the third most by an opposing player behind Seattle’s Julio Rodríguez (43) and the Dodgers’ Kyle Tucker (37). Langeliers entered the day a .279 (41-for-147) career hitter against Texas with 11 home runs and 29 RBIs in 41 games. The home runs and RBIs are his most against any team.
He’s been a Ranger killer in every sense of the word.
“[Langeliers] is one of their most dangerous hitters, even though Cortez has been one of their hottest hitters,” Schumaker reiterated. “It's a chess match. I get it. That's part of this. It's part of this seat. I'm just saying, in my opinion, I should have made that move, and I didn't. I didn't put our guy in a good position to succeed.”