ARLINGTON -- Rangers manager Skip Schumaker hasn’t been scared of changing up the lineup if things aren’t going smoothly.
Joc Pederson hitting in the leadoff spot in the Rangers' 7-4 win over the Diamondbacks on Tuesday certainly raised some eyebrows, and Schumaker might as well have been Brad Pitt as Billy Beane in “Moneyball” emphatically asserting, “He gets on base.”
Well not exactly, though Pederson was getting on base at a .400 clip over his last seven games entering the day.
The Rangers’ newest No. 2 hitter, Brandon Nimmo, had hit leadoff in every game he played before Tuesday, hitting .351/.385/.541 as the first batter of the game. The problem had recently become getting guys to drive him in.
“Just shuffling the lineup a little bit, trying to mix it up, trying to get some guys going in different spots,” Schumaker said pregame. “Obviously, Nimmo has been so good at the leadoff spot and Joc has had a nice homestand. Trying to get more guys on base for Nimmo is kind of the thought. Just trying to lengthen the lineup a little bit.”
What happened was a leadoff homer from Pederson to begin the game, along with a four-run barrage in the fifth inning as the Rangers beat the Diamondbacks to even the three-game set.
Meanwhile, MacKenzie Gore dealt the longest start by a Rangers pitcher this season with a much-needed eight innings of one-run ball coming off a bullpen day in the series opener.