Heim, Rangers pound Guardians 12-4 after Naylor brothers go deep in same inning
ARLINGTON, TEXAS - JULY 14: Jonah Heim #28 of the Texas Rangers celebrates with Adolis Garcia #53 after hitting a home run during the eighth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Globe Life Field on July 14, 2023 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Sa
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) - Jonah Heim homered and drove in four runs, fellow All-Star starters Corey Seager and Adolis Garcia also homered, and the Texas Rangers rallied Friday night for a 12-4 victory over the Cleveland Guardians, who got a history-making pair of homers from Bo and Josh Naylor.
The Naylors became the first brothers in major league history to hit multi-run homers in the same inning for the same team when each hit a two-run shot in the third to put the Guardians ahead 4-0. But that was the lone highlight for Cleveland.
Nathaniel Lowe homered in the fourth as part of a 4-for-4 night. The Rangers scored two runs in that inning, one in the sixth, five in the seventh and four in the eighth.
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Heim finished 3-for-5 and fell a triple short of the cycle. Garcia, who entered the game leading the AL in RBIs with 75, drove in three runs and scored three on his 3-for-5 night. His homer was his 24th.
"Great game. Great comeback," Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said. "They really battled back. Big day by the heart of our order. Those guys all did such a great job."
The Rangers had 17 hits, their big league-leading 50th game with double-digit knocks. It was their major league-best 20th game with double-digit runs.
Bo Naylor hit a 1-0 changeup from Rangers starter Jon Gray an estimated 435 feet to right field with no outs in the third. Four batters later, Josh hit a 3-1 slider from Gray down the right-field line and it barely stayed fair to make it 4-0.
"It’s something super special," Bo Naylor said. "It’s something we’ve talked about, joked about in the past. Seeing it come to pass is pretty wild to think about."
The Rangers pulled ahead in the seventh. Seager’s double off Sam Hentges (1-1) tied the game at 4-4. Garcia followed with an RBI single, Heim had a two-run double and Leody Taveras had a run-scoring single.
Brock Burke (3-2), the first of three Rangers relievers, left the bases loaded in a scoreless seventh.
Seager, Garcia and Heim all homered in the eighth off Cody Morris.
Cleveland starter Aaron Civale left with a 4-0 lead after five innings, allowing two runs on five hits. He threw 79 pitches.
THE FINISHER
Taveras, Texas’ No. 9 batter, was the final hitter in the Rangers’ last three innings at the plate. He flied out to center to end the sixth and singled in the seventh with Travis Jankowski thrown out at third base to end the inning. Taveras flied out to left to end the eighth.
LEITER BEING HELD OUT
RHP Jack Leiter, the second overall pick in the 2021 draft by Texas, has been placed on the developmental list at Double-A Frisco. Leiter will be working on some mechanical adjustments and there is no timetable for his return, the Rangers said.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Guardians: RHP Shane Bieber won’t make his scheduled start on Monday because of forearm irritation, manager Terry Francona said. Bieber had an MRI on Friday and was scheduled to visit Dr. Keith Meister, the Rangers’ orthopedist, on Saturday.
UP NEXT
Guardians: RHP Gavin Williams (1-1, 4.01 ERA), called up in late June when Triston McKenzie went back on the injured list, will make his fifth big league start.
Rangers: LHP Andrew Heaney (5-6, 4.71) comes off his worst outing of the season last Saturday at Washington. Heaney allowed eight runs, including three home runs, in three innings.