DeShields hope to end slump as Rangers host Yankees
Outfielder Delino DeShields was not in the starting lineup Tuesday when the Texas Rangers evened their series with the New York Yankees.
The day off was used as an attempt to break out of a hitting slump but he will be in the lineup Wednesday in the rubber game of the three-game series at Globe Life Park in Arlington Texas.
The Yankees will send left-hander CC Sabathia (2-1, 2.40 ERA) to oppose Texas right-hander Doug Fister (1-4, 3.43).
DeShields, stuck in a 2-for-33 swoon, was given his first day off since returning from the disabled list on April 22.
He had the broken hamate bone removed from his left hand in the first week of the season and said before Texas won for the fifth time in its last 13 games that he has been trying to do too much at the plate with his hand feeling better.
"I've got to get back to being simpler at the plate, and I'll be good," DeShields told the Dallas Morning News. "I was trying to swing harder rather than squaring the ball up. It was causing my front side to open up and miss pitches I should hit and chase pitches I normally wouldn't chase. I'm glad I figured it out, after 11 or 12 days."
New York rookie second baseman Gleyber Torres continues to impress with his power after he ripped the seventh home run on his Major League career on Tuesday in New York's fifth loss in the last 27 games.
Torres slugged the first pitch he saw from Rangers ace left-hander Cole Hamels into the left-field bleachers for a home run in the third inning, recording his fourth homer in as many games.
On Monday, the 21-year-old Torres joined Mickey Mantle as the youngest Yankees to enjoy a multi-homer game. Torres is also the youngest player in franchise history to hit seven homers in his first 26 games.
"I just try to look for my pitch," Torres said. "If the pitcher doesn't throw me my pitch, I try to stay focused, waiting for my pitch. Our lineup is awesome. Everybody does their job, everybody helps the team. I just try to help my team, too, try to put in something, hit or defense. I try to help and try to win."
Sabathia will make his ninth start of the season and pitch on regular four days' rest. He recorded his first loss of the season in his most recent start at Kansas City, snapping a streak of 15 consecutive unbeaten regular season starts that began on Aug. 19, 2017. Over that stretch, Sabathia went 7-0 with a 2.61 ERA.
Sabathia is 11-6 with a 5.12 ERA in 22 career starts against the Rangers. He last faced Texas on June 28, 2016 at Yankee Stadium, allowing six earned runs in seven innings.
Fister will also make his ninth start of the season and will be working on extended five-days' rest after a no-decision in a 4-2 loss on Thursday in Chicago. He has gone 3-4 with a 5.56 ERA over seven career starts against. the Yankees, including 1-1, 3.72 in a pair of starts last season while pitching for the Boston Red Sox.
