ARLINGTON -- When you’re facing elimination -- or in this case, a sweep -- you want your ace on the mound. The Rangers had that with Max Scherzer on Sunday afternoon, but if you ask manager Bruce Bochy, everything that could go wrong this weekend did. The ace was no exception.
Scherzer didn’t make it out of the fourth inning against the Brewers, as he allowed three runs on three hits, four walks and a hit-by-pitch, and the Rangers continued their four-game losing skid, ultimately falling, 6-2, to Milwaukee to end the homestand at Globe Life Field.
It’s the first time the Rangers have lost four straight games since dropping three to the Reds and one to the Yankees from April 24-27.
“It was really [uncharacteristic] the whole series for us,” Bochy said. “But you give them credit, they really grinded out at-bats and laid off some tough pitches. That’s kind of who we are, and they had a good series doing that on us. … We just couldn't get this offense going. We're in a bit of a funk right now.”
Texas had won the previous three games Scherzer started since he joined the club at the Trade Deadline. Despite the shortened outing against the Brewers, he still has a 2.66 ERA as a member of the Rangers.
Scherzer said he didn’t feel especially “off” in the start, but the Brewers found a way to make him work, especially with 42 pitches in the third inning, when he allowed two runs on one hit, three walks and a hit-by-pitch. He threw 99 pitches overall in just 3 2/3 frames.
“It’s a tough one,” Scherzer said. “This is a weird start. It's not like I got hit around. They just put really good at-bats against me. They had a really good approach and just found a way to take their walks. It just didn't feel like I was putting guys away, especially when it got to two strikes.
“They were doing a great job of fouling balls off and not giving me an inch. They didn't chase or anything like that. So it's a weird one. Obviously, I want to pitch better. Obviously, I need to pitch deeper into a ballgame. But sometimes you gotta tip your hat.”
Despite striking out four batters to bring him to 3,344 in his career and move past Hall of Famer Phil Niekro for 11th on MLB’s all-time strikeout list, Scherzer noted that he wasn’t worried about individual accomplishments as he continues to try to help the Rangers in their pursuit of the American League West crown.
“I’m sure that's gonna mean more at a later date,” Scherzer said. “I show up here and I play to win. I'm only here to win. I'm not here for milestones, I'm not here for accomplishments, I'm here to win with this team. So I’m sure it's gonna be a good moment to reflect upon later in my life, but not right now.”
But Sunday, it didn’t matter much what Scherzer and the rest of the pitching staff did, as the Rangers’ offense continued to run cold.
Texas outhit Milwaukee, 8-7, but went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position while stranding 10 on base. Corey Seager, Nathaniel Lowe and Ezequiel Duran logged multihit games, but the 4-5-6 hitters combined to go 0-for-12. Texas’ only runs came on a solo homer from Seager, his 23rd of the season, and a Leody Taveras RBI groundout.
Bochy said that throughout this stretch the entire lineup has been expanding the strike zone, leading to more strikeouts and fewer walks.
“That's how offenses go,” Scherzer said. “They go up and they go down. They can score a billion and they can get shut out. That's just kind of the way it goes. It's the pitching that can provide stability up and down the staff. You can get quality starts and really keep teams in the ballgame. I look at myself and I didn't get deep into the ballgame today, so that's frustrating on my own.
“You want to win every single time out. I know we've lost a few games, but you want to win every single time. This one would have been nice.”