Rangers<\/p>\n
Related:Watch: Marcus Semien walks it off as Rangers beat Braves to keep hot streak going<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cHe ended up winning the ballgame after getting smoked,\u201d Bochy said. \u201cI can\u2019t say enough great things about Marcus.\u201d<\/p>\n Before the walk-off came the knock-down. Semien was hit on the right side of his face by a 94.6 mph Grant Holmes fastball in the third inning of what was then a tied game. The 34-year-old second baseman immediately dropped to the ground and held his head in his hands. He was tended to by head athletic trainer Matt Lucero and Bochy by the home plate dirt for several moments before he sat back up. <\/p>\n Semien\u2019s helmet flap prevented what could have been a catastrophic injury when Holmes\u2019 fastball clipped it before it made contact with his cheek. <\/p>\n \u201cI think I got lucky,\u201d Semien said. \u201cI don\u2019t know where it hit me on the helmet. Initially I felt impact on the side of my face. If it got me without the helmet it\u2019d probably be way more painful. Eventually I got up and I was fine.\u201d<\/p>\n Bochy initially believed that there wasn\u2019t \u201cany chance\u201d that Semien would remain in the game after the hit by pitch. Semien passed the on-field concussion tests, though, and was adamant that he was fine. He took first base and scored on an Adolis Garc\u00eda<\/a> single in the next at bat to give the Rangers a 4-2 lead. <\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019ll make you stand up,\u201d Rangers right-handed starter Kumar Rocker said of Semien\u2019s hit by pitch, \u201cbut he\u2019s an iron man.\u201d<\/p>\n Semien has played the second-most games in baseball (586) since he signed with the Rangers three-and-a-half years ago. Only Braves first baseman Matt Olsen \u2014 who greeted Semien after he was plunked \u2014 has played more (589) during that span.\u00a0He\u2019s missed just one game this season, sat three times last year and played all 162 two years ago when the Rangers marched to a championship. <\/p>\n \u201cWhat a warrior effort, huh? You get hit in the head like that, there\u2019s not too many guys that\u2019d stay in the game,\u201d Bochy said. \u201cIt\u2019s just fitting that he came up there in the situation.\u201d<\/p>\n The situation, which happened just under two hours after Semien was drilled by the fastball, came in the bottom of the 10th inning after the Braves took the lead in the top of the ninth and after the Rangers took it back in the bottom of the ninth. <\/p>\n Atlanta right-handed reliever Enyel De Los Santos intentionally walked shortstop Corey Seager ahead of Semien with ghost runner Josh Smith at second base. Semien swung through the first De Los Santos fastball before he hit the second 102.7 mph into left field to score Smith from second base and secure the team\u2019s first extra innings win since his last walk-off hit vs. the Seattle Mariners on June 28. <\/p>\n \u201cWe want to win,\u201d Semien said. \u201cWe want to win every night. The team\u2019s playing well and the vibes are good.\u201d<\/p>\n The Rangers played six extra-inning games in the final two weeks of the season\u2019s first half and lost five of them as they sputtered into the All-Star break with a sub-.500 record. It was a reflection of their inability to rally when behind in games (they still have not won a game in which they trailed by a three or more runs) and hit with runners in scoring position (their .661 OPS in those situations was the fifth-worst in baseball through July 13). <\/p>\n The Rangers did both Saturday night. They trailed by two runs through two innings after Rocker (4 IP, 3 ER, 3 BB) struggled to find the strike zone early but tied the game in the second (via an Evan Carter run-scoring triple and a Josh Jung run-scoring single) and took the lead in the third on Garc\u00eda\u2019s hit. <\/p>\n The Braves took a 5-4 lead in the top of the ninth when Michael Harris II \u2014 who finished with a home run, a double and two triples \u2014 led off the inning with a triple that left fielder Wyatt Langford couldn\u2019t track down and scored on a sacrifice fly. The Rangers tied it in the bottom of the ninth after Jung walked, Sam Haggerty pinch ran and Jonah Heim drove him in with a double into right field. Heim began Saturday\u2019s game with a team-high .884 OPS in high-leverage situations for his career. <\/p>\n \u201cYeah,\u201d Semien said, \u201che\u2019s got a flare for the dramatic.\u201d <\/p>\n Look who\u2019s talking. <\/p>\n \u201cLook at the numbers,\u201d said right-handed relief pitcher Shawn Armstrong, who threw 35 pitches between the ninth and 10th innings to hold over a thin Rangers bullpen. \u201cHe doesn\u2019t sit out much. It\u2019s going to take a lot for him to come out of the lineup. I\u2019m sure glad he\u2019s in it.\u201d<\/p>\n He\u2019ll be there Sunday too. <\/p>\n There might be a bruise. <\/p>\n And a win streak, too. <\/p>\n Texas won its fifth straight game as it continued its recent surge into the playoff race. <\/p>\n Both hitters took swings Saturday in Arlington, but their timelines look vastly different.<\/p>\n Find more Rangers coverage from The Dallas Morning News here<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"Texas](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/ZU2CJ3I3HVEZJDJ7X6NQKSMRYU.jpg\")
<\/a>Watch: Marcus Semien walks it off as Rangers beat Braves to keep hot streak going<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Texas](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/FQLAK7JDKBAFXDWE5HOH2C3TKA.jpg\")
<\/a>How soon could Rangers\u2019 Jake Burger, Kyle Higashioka return from soft tissue injuries?<\/a><\/p>\n