Rays pitcher Alex Cobb sends Rangers to 7th straight loss

The free fall was already underway for the Texas Rangers, but things went to a new level on Monday evening.

Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Alex Cobb was electric through 8 innings, and Rangers starter Matt Garza couldn’t keep up in a 6-2 victory for the Rays. The loss for Texas was their 7th in a row, and with that, they have fallen completely out of the playoffs (as they stand currently) for the first time in months.

Cobb finished the night with a stellar line of 8 innings, 6 hits, 2 earned runs, and 10 strikeouts, and frankly, that illustrates purely how good he was. His performance wasn’t without blemish, but Cobb needed only 106 pitches to complete the 8 frames, and he seemed to cruise between hitters for the majority of the night.

Offensively, Tampa Bay was pulsed by rookie phenom Wil Myers along with two of their more seasoned studs in Evan Longoria and Ben Zobrist. Myers provided 3 RBI’s on the strength of a home run and a double, while Longoria and Zobrist added 3 hits a piece on the night.

However, even with the greatness of that quartet of Tampa Bay’s players, the story was the futility of the Rangers. Matt Garza struggled mightily (6 ER) for the 3rd straight start, and the offense ran into the buzzsaw that was Alex Cobb. It is probably too much to ask for to suggest patience for Texas fans, but it’s important to note that the race isn’t over despite these recent struggles.

Tomorrow is another day.