With yesterday’s 9-2 loss to Sacramento, the Rangers finished 6-7 against the Athletics. They went 5-8 against the Angels.

That in a nutshell is why they are languishing at under .500, and gasping for playoff air. If you cannot beat the teams your supposed to beat in your division, you really don’t deserve to win.

Yes, they had already won the first two games of the three-game Athletics series. But they had to sweep. They need more than baby steps. They need a sweep or two to make significant progress, and this team doesn’t seem to have that in them.

Now they have four coming up against the Rays, the best team in the American League.

Houston, Toronto, and Seattle all won last night, knocking the Rangers a game back in both the division and wild card chases.

Splitting the four-game set against Tampa Bay does them no good. They need to win at least three. A playoff-calibre team would figure out how.

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