A lot of people were wondering how the Rangers would look when Friday's World Series Game 7 began. Reports said the clubhouse was loose, and Ron Washington was anything but despondent, but you can't know how players will actually respond until they take the field, and Thursday night the Rangers suffered one of the most emotionally devastating losses in baseball history.
World Series Game 7: Rangers Score First, Despite Mistake
Well, they got off to a positive start. Ian Kinsler led off and lined the second pitch of the game into left field for a base hit. But then Kinsler decided to take a little nappy-poo and Yadier Molina almost immediately picked him off. So much for Kinsler being one of the best baserunners in baseball!
You'd think that would be crippling for the Rangers. It was not. Elvis Andrus walked. Josh Hamilton pulled a ground ball double into right to score Andrus all the way from first. The next batter was Michael Young, and he dropped an RBI double in right field, by the line.
That fast, it was 2-0 Rangers, and it was 2-0 Rangers despite Kinsler’s mistake. Chris Carpenter got out of the inning without sustaining any more damage, but he put his team in the hole, and once again you have to wonder about the whole short-rest thing. Pitchers tend to be much worse on short rest. Carpenter did not look particularly good.
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