Corey Seager hit his 200th career home run and Nathan Eovaldi pitched seven scoreless innings, leading the Texas Rangers to a 2-1 win over the struggling Chicago White Sox on Thursday.
Eovaldi (10-7) struck out 10 batters, matching his season high, and got his second consecutive win. He was working on a no-hitter until Gavin Sheets hit a leadoff single in the fifth inning.
“What a job he did,” said manager Bruce Bochy about Eovaldi. “You need your pitching to come through and in seven solid innings he did his thing out there.”
The White Sox (31-104) lost their seventh game in a row. They are 4-33 since the All-Star break and are getting closer to their franchise record of 106 losses set in 1970. They are also approaching the modern major league record for most losses in a season, which is 120 by the 1962 New York Mets.
Kirby Yates gave up Andrew Benintendi’s 15th home run with one out in the ninth inning but then struck out Andrew Vaughn and retired Sheets on a grounder to second base, earning his 25th save in 26 attempts.
The Rangers have won three straight games and five of their last seven. They completed a sweep of the season series against the White Sox.
Chicago rookie Nick Nastrini (0-6) retired his first 10 batters before Seager hit his 30th home run of the season, a solo shot deep into the right-field patio in the fourth inning. Seager also made a strong throw to first base on Nicky Lopez’s grounder in the eighth inning, leaving two runners stranded.
“It’s just impressive,” Eovaldi said about Seager, who has hit 10 home runs in August. “We’re so grateful just to be able to watch him play every day and everything that he does on a day-in, day-out basis.”
