Jacob Latz had gone 22 straight appearances without a blown save or a loss. In that stretch, he recorded 16 saves and two wins. That’s a pretty dominating run for a closer. So, you can excuse him for not being perfect. Last night, he recorded his first blown save since May 13. And picked up his third win of the season. Baseball works in mysterious ways.

After the Rangers scored two runs in the bottom of the eighth to take a 4-2 lead over the anemic San Franciso Giants, it was pretty much a foregone conclusion that Latz would come in and close out the game. 

He started the first Giants batter of the ninth off with a strikeout. Then, the newly depleted Giants, who lost so many players at the trade deadline they’re basically fielding a Triple-A team, singled, walked, then singled to load the bases. 

Up came their 6-foot, seven-inch highly heralded rookie Bryce Eldridge. He slashed a single to left to score two runs and tie the game at 4-4.

Latz settled in and got the next two batters, then counted on his team to pick him up. This is the team that had lost six in a row and was in a freefall, fresh off their most sloppy game in three years.

But when Jake Burger led off the inning with a double, the Rangers were in business. Wyatt Langford flew out to right, but the Giants elected to intentionally walk Corey Seager. Brandon Nimmo struck out. So, it was up to Ezequiel Duran, the Rangers MVP for 2026. He smashed a ground-rule double to right and Jake Burger walked home for the winning run.

Jacob Latz picked up his third win of the year. And the Rangers snapped their season-worst six-game losing skid. 

Winning that game was a huge sigh of relief. Losing that game would have been a kick in the stomach. 

*****