Texas MLB Capsules: Treanor, Wilson lead the Rangers to victory

ARLINGTON — The Texas Rangers were clinging to a one-run lead and C.J. Wilson had gone to a 3-0 count on the No. 8 hitter in the Chicago White Sox lineup.

Then strike one, strike two and three foul balls before Donny Lucy finally swung and missed to end the sixth inning. Wilson, the former reliever turned starter, bounced off the mound and the Rangers went on to a 4-2 victory Tuesday night.

"You could see the excitement on his face, he’s a competitor," catcher Matt Treanor said.

"I’m not going to give in, not just going to throw a cookie down the middle," Wilson said. "Once I battled back to 3-2, I knew I had a chance to get him out. ... Knowing that was the tying run I would have walked in if I would have missed."

Wilson (2-1), who before this year hadn’t started since his 2005 rookie season when he was coming off Tommy John ligament replacement surgery, allowed two runs over six innings and has a 1.75 ERA this season. The left-hander struck out five and walked three.

Treanor had a solo homer and a two-run double off left-hander Mark Buehrle (2-3) for his first extra-base hits of the season.

"Some of the bigger-name guys, I’ve done pretty good against them," said Buehrle, adding he didn’t know much about Treanor before facing him. "He’s married to some volleyball player."

Buehrle allowed four runs over seven innings to lose his third straight start.

The husband of two-time Olympic beach volleyball gold medalist Misty May-Treanor had his big game hours after Texas optioned Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Taylor Teagarden, the two catchers on their season-opening roster, to Triple-A Oklahoma City.

Treanor was acquired from Milwaukee during spring training. He was called up April 9 from Oklahoma City when Saltalamacchia went on the disabled list because of upper back stiffness.

Treanor put Texas ahead to stay with a solo homer in the second, the ball just clearing the 14-foot wall in left field. His double made 3-0 in the fourth after Josh Hamilton and Vladimir Guerrero had consecutive singles and Buehrle threw a wild pitch.

"It was awesome," Wilson said. "He’s taking the role by the horns."

It was the sixth start in nine games for Treanor, who played for Florida from 2004-08 and started four games for Detroit last season. Max Ramirez, recalled Tuesday from Oklahoma City, is the other Rangers catcher.

The Rangers activated Saltalamacchia from the disabled list Tuesday and optioned him to Oklahoma City, where he had already appeared in six games on a rehabilitation assignment. Teagarden was hitting only .037 (1 for 27) with 17 strikeouts in 10 games.

Dustin Nippert worked two scoreless innings before Frank Francisco had a perfect ninth for his first save in three chances.

Francisco lost his closer job after blowing two save chances the first week of the season. Hard-throwing Neftali Feliz, who took over as the closer, was unavailable after pitching the previous two games, and giving up back-to-back homers in the ninth inning of a loss to Detroit on Monday night.

"I haven’t ever lost my confidence," Francisco said. "I know what I can do, whatever happened in the past is in the past. I’m locating my fastball better."

Manager Ron Washington said he still considered Feliz his closer, but then added the closer is "anybody we put out there in the ninth inning."

Carlos Quentin snapped a 1-for-34 slide with an infield RBI single in the fifth for Chicago, which was coming off a three-game sweep of Seattle.

After the White Sox loaded the bases in the sixth on a hit batsman, a single and a walk, Alexei Ramirez had an RBI single. Wilson then finally got Lucy out on his 104th pitch of the game.

"We’ve didn’t get the big base hit we needed," manager Ozzie Guillen said. "We’ve got to execute."

NOTES: Rangers rookie first baseman Justin Smoak got his first major league RBI with a sacrifice fly in the sixth. ... Bench coach Jackie Moore’s jersey was hanging in the Rangers dugout. Moore is away from the team after the death of his 52-year-old daughter Sunday. ... Wilson had thrown 25 2-3 consecutive scoreless innings at Rangers Ballpark, dating back to last July 21, before the fourth inning. ... White Sox first baseman Paul Konerko had homered in three straight games before Tuesday.

Rangers put Cruz on DL with hamstring problem

ARLINGTON — Texas Rangers right fielder Nelson Cruz was put on the 15-day disabled list Tuesday, a day after he reaggravated his strained right hamstring and had to come out of a game early for the third time in a week.

Manager Ron Washington said Cruz had "only a first-degree strain" but was very sore. Washington said the slugger was going to have to miss at least five to seven games and the DL move was made because the Rangers couldn’t afford to be short on the bench that long.

"It’s hard to be out there and you can’t complete any games," Cruz said. "Sometimes you want to run, you want to steal some bases or make some plays, and you aren’t allowed to do it 100 percent."

The Rangers later optioned struggling catcher Taylor Teagarden (.037 batting average, 1 for 27 with 17 strikeouts in 10 games) to Triple-A Oklahoma City and recalled catcher Max Ramirez. Jarrod Saltalamacchia (upper back stiffness), the starting catcher on opening day, was activated from the 15-day DL and optioned to Oklahoma City, where he had already played six games on a rehab assignment.

"We’ve struggled at that position in the early going here, and want to give Taylor an opportunity to go down and get himself right," general manager Jon Daniels said. "We explained to Jarrod, now that he’s healthy, we just want to see him go down there and play, get consistent reps, consistent at-bats."

Vladimir Guerrero started in right field instead of designated hitter for the first time this season Tuesday night against the Chicago White Sox. Right-hander Ryan Garko was the DH against White Sox left-handed starter Mark Buehrle.

Matt Treanor, called up April 9 after being acquired from Milwaukee in a trade during spring training, started at catcher for the sixth time in nine games.

The Rangers also recalled outfielder Craig Gentry from Oklahoma City. Gentry started in center field against Chicago.

Cruz, an All-Star who hit 33 home runs in his full major league season last year, is hitting .328 this season and is second in the majors with seven home runs. He has 17 RBIs. The earliest he could return is May 12.

David Murphy, a left-handed hitter not in the lineup Tuesday night, will get most of the time in right field against right-handers. Murphy had a two-run double and a run-saving catch Monday night after replacing Cruz, who tweaked his injury when he scored on a wild pitch in the fifth inning in the finale of four-game series against Detroit.

"Yesterday I felt great. Even when I went from first to second, I was normal," Cruz said. "When I took off to home plate and made that quick move, that’s when I felt it. It was worse than what I did before."

Cruz indicated after Monday night’s game that he was feeling better, but said an X-ray Tuesday showed fluid in the affected area.

Cruz left the first two games of the team’s series in Boston last week when his hamstring tightened up, then was the DH for the series finale Thursday. He didn’t play Friday night in the series opener against the Tigers.

Guerrero signed with the Rangers after the Los Angeles Angels showed little interest in retaining the eight-time All-Star and former American League MVP after he had two stints on the disabled list last season for a torn right pectoral muscle and strained left knee. He hit .371 with two homers, 13 RBIs and three stolen bases in his first 18 games for Texas.

"I feel good. I feel great," Guerrero said in the clubhouse before Tuesday’s game. "I’ve been feeling fine since the beginning of spring training."

Washington said he put Guerrero in the outfield with the stipulations of no diving catches and to just get the ball to the cutoff man if it got past him. Then the manager indicated he was partially joking.

"The one thing I badly don’t want to do is hurt Vlad," Washington said. "Now I can’t control his reactions. It’s just a running joke. He’s a pro."

Washington said the loss of Cruz wouldn’t accelerate the return of second baseman Ian Kinsler, who Tuesday played the second of three rehabilitation games at Double-A Frisco. Kinsler has been on the disabled list since spraining his right ankle during spring training.

"We have a plan with Kinsler, we want to finish the process," Washington said. "We’re not going to push him. He has two more days to play. He is going to play two more days."

If there are no setbacks, Kinsler will be activated before Friday night’s game in Seattle.

-- Stephen Hawkins

Harang, Reds beat Astros 6-2

HOUSTON — During his early season struggles, Aaron Harang didn’t think he was being aggressive enough.

On Tuesday his conscious effort to change that helped the Cincinnati starter to his first win of the season.

Harang pitched six solid innings and Ryan Hanigan drove in a career-high-tying three runs to give the Reds a 6-2 win over the Astros. The win breaks a five-game road skid for the Reds and halts Houston’s winning streak at three.

"We talked about it and (pitching coach) Bryan (Price) seemed to think too it was maybe being a little more passive lately instead of just being old me, being aggressive," he said. "We kind of figured that out he said: ‘Go out and be the old you and challenge guys and see what happens."’

Harang (1-3) allowed a season-low two runs. Houston scored in the first inning, before he settled down after his previous two starts where he allowed a combined 14 earned runs.

"I just had to establish early that I was going to throw strikes and throw them when I needed to," he said. "I was able to get ahead and get that inside corners working for me."

Houston’s Michael Bourn was impressed with Harang.

"He had good stuff tonight," Bourn said. "He placed the ball really well. He kept us off balance with the slider and had good placement with the fastball."

The Reds were leading 2-1 before their three-run sixth inning made it 5-1 and they held on for the win.

Hanigan, who went 2 for 3, drove in both runs in the second inning and added an RBI in the sixth. With 10 RBIs this season, Hanigan is just one shy of his total from last season.

"He made some changes and he works hard," Reds manager Dusty Baker said. "Last year he had trouble driving in runs but this year he’s welcoming that opportunity and also the challenge. "

Harang allowed eight hits with a walk and six strikeouts in six innings. Daniel Ray Herrera pitched a perfect seventh before Nick Masset did the same in the eighth and Francisco Cordero finished it off with a scoreless ninth.

Houston had runners at first and third with two outs in the third inning before Harang escaped any trouble by striking out Lance Berkman.

Berkman got Houston’s first extra-base hit in the sixth inning with a ground-rule double that hit just inside the line before bouncing into the stands. A single by Geoff Blum came before Berkman scored on a sacrifice fly that got Houston within 5-2.

Brandon Phillips helped Harang get out of that inning with a nifty leaping catch on a ball hit by Tommy Manzella.

Cincinnati hit three straight singles with no outs in the sixth inning. The third one, by Jonny Gomes, knocked home Jay Bruce and pushed Cincinnati’s lead to 3-1 and chased Astros starter Bud Norris (1-2).

"I really attacked early, but then I got lazy," Norris said. "Whatever it was — mentally or mechanically — you have to go out there and compete. Some nights you are going to have it all working and some nights you aren’t."

Hanigan made it four singles in a row with his run-scoring hit off Jeff Fulchino. Drew Stubbs made it 5-1 when Gomes scored on his sacrifice fly.

Harang singled in the fifth inning before Stubbs walked. Norris retired the next three batters to get out of that jam.

Norris gave up six hits and five runs with four walks while striking out six in five innings.

Norris hit Scott Rolen with a pitch to start the second inning before walking Bruce. A single by Hanigan drove in Rolen and Bruce to give Cincinnati a 2-1 lead.

Bourn got hit by a pitch in the first inning before stealing second and reaching third when catcher Hanigan overthrew second base. He made it 1-0 when he scored on a groundout by Jeff Keppinger.

The Reds added a run in the eighth inning when Orlando Cabrera scored on a balk by Sammy Gervacio.

NOTES: Astros ace Roy Oswalt rejoined the team on Tuesday after spending several days in Mississippi helping his parents in the aftermath of a tornado that destroyed their home. ... Tuesday was the seventh game of a nine-game homestand for Houston, which is playing 22 of its first 31 games at home.

-- Kristie Rieken

Oswalt returns after helping tornado relief effort

HOUSTON — Astros ace Roy Oswalt rejoined the team on Tuesday after spending several days with his parents in Mississippi helping them recover from tornado damage.

He plans to make his next start as scheduled on Thursday against Cincinnati. He doesn’t think it will be difficult to focus on his job in the aftermath of the disaster.

"No, it won’t," he said. "I treat it like two different worlds anyway. When I go home that’s one world and when I’m here it’s another. So I’m back here now."

Houston manager Brad Mills spoke with Oswalt upon his return and wasn’t worried about his mindset for Thursday’s game.

"I’m glad that he was able to go back and help," Mills said. "Of course our thoughts and prayers are with his mom and dad and getting rebuilt."

Oswalt’s childhood home was destroyed by the tornado Saturday near Weir, Miss. His mother, Jean, stayed in a closet with her dog as the twister came through.

"After it passed she was standing in the open pretty much. Of the whole house there was nothing left but the closet," Oswalt said. "The worst thing was when she got up and looked down the street, first thing that went through her mind was that everybody’s dead around where she lived. Luckily right where we live everyone made it."

Oswalt drove home on Saturday and worked with his parents to salvage what little they could from the debris. He said many of the homes in the neighborhood where he grew up were destroyed.

Oswalt’s mother escaped with only her dog and a Bible, which she found at her feet once the storm had passed. A shoe rack fell on her head during the twister and she was shaken up, but otherwise OK physically. He was glad to be able to spend time with his mother who he said was "beat up" emotionally in the aftermath of the storm.

"The house had been there 40 years," he said. "It was the only thing I’ve known. All the stuff that we collected over the last 32 years of my life was pretty much gone. We found some pictures and some of their clothes. But everything else was pretty much gone."

His parents had a lot of memorabilia from his baseball career, much of which was destroyed. He said he found pieces of the trophy he won as most valuable player of the 2005 NLCS strewn about the woods near his house, but he was able to salvage a couple of jerseys from his first season.

"The biggest thing is that my mom’s alive," he said. "The other stuff you can replace, it’s materialistic stuff."

His father, Billy, was out of state on a hunting trip when the storm hit.

After a couple of days of cleaning up, they burned down the remnants of the house. Then Roy used the bulldozer Astros owner Drayton McLane gave him after Houston’s trip to the World Series in 2005 to clear away the foundation and other debris.

His parents, who are staying in one of his homes nearby, plan to begin rebuild on the site.

-- Kristie Rieken