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Tejeda helps Rangers hang on to defeat Brewers

Jun 9, 2007 - 6:01 AM ARLINGTON, Texas (Ticker) -- Robinson Tejeda pitched well into the seventh inning and Mark Teixeira drove in three runs as the Texas Rangers posted a 9-6 interleague victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Friday.

Ian Kinsler homered and scored twice and Sammy Sosa had three hits and drove in a run for Texas, which held Milwaukee to just one run through six innings before nearly blowing the lead a frame later.

Tejeda (5-6) was cruising through six frames before surrendering five runs in the seventh. The righthander allowed six runs, eight hits and three walks to barely avoid his fourth straight loss. In his last performance, the native of the Dominican Republic was tagged for a season-high eight runs and eight hits in 5 2/3 innings in an 11-6 loss to Seattle on Sunday.

Tejeda's 6 2/3 innings marked the first time a Texas starter had gone past the sixth inning since Kameron Loe completed seven innings against the Angels on May 12.

"Tonight was the sort of outing we needed from Tejeda and the sort of outing we need from everyone else," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "He reached the seventh, got two outs but started getting his pitches up which allowed them to start popping the ball. However, I loved the fact that he used all of his pitches and was really pounding the strike zone"

Eric Gagne pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his sixth save in six opportunities.

With the Rangers leading, 7-1, entering the seventh, Tejeda allowed an RBI groundout to Bill Hall before surrendering two-run homers to Corey Hart and Ryan Brawn to cut the Brewers' deficit to 7-6.

"I felt a little tired in the seventh," Tejeda said. "I was trying to get a quick inning and just gave them some pitches to hit. I was throwing fastballs and they swung the bat really well."

However, in the bottom of the eighth, Victor Diaz had an RBI single and later scored on an error to make the score 9-6.

After Tejeda allowed a solo homer to Prince Fielder in the top of the second to give Milwaukee a 1-0 lead, a bases-loaded walk by Michael Young and a run-scoring single by Teixeira in the bottom of the frame gave Texas a 2-1 lead.

The Rangers increased their lead in the fourth when Kinsler led off with a homer on an 0-1 pitch from Chris Capuano and Teixeira hammered a two-run double into the right field corner to make it 5-1. Sosa later followed with a run-double to increase the lead for Texas.

"We've been struggling all year," Sosa said. "But we can't give up. We need both sides, pitching and hitting, to be at the top of our game and tonight we really had them working."

Teixeira stepped awkwardly on first base following a sixth-inning groundout, came up limping and left the game. He was diagnosed with a sore left quadriceps and was icing the injury after the game. Washington said Teixeira, the only Rangers player to appear in all 60 games this season, would be re-evaluated on Saturday and is listed as day-to-day.

Capuano (5-5) also allowed six runs and eight hits to go along with four walks to fall to .500. The lefthander, who struck out five, is winless in his last six starts.

"It was like Jekyll and Hyde tonight," Capuano said. "In the third inning I felt right on top of my stuff but in the next inning, I just didn't have good command. I put myself in a lot of hitters' counts and that was double frustrating because I knew we were going to hit here."