Shea Langeliers made a significant impact against his hometown team, the Texas Rangers.
In the first game of a doubleheader, Langeliers smashed a two-run homer and tallied a career-best five RBIs. He followed up with another three RBIs in the second game, helping the Oakland Athletics split the two contests with the Rangers on Wednesday.
The Athletics emerged victorious with a 9-4 win in the opener, while the Rangers held on for a narrow 12-11 victory in the nightcap. Notable performances included three RBIs each from Jonah Heim and Nathaniel Lowe for the Rangers.
Despite a late surge from Oakland, Kirby Yates secured his seventh save by inducing a flyball to right from Tyler Nevin with runners on first and second in the ninth inning.
In the second game, Langeliers continued his offensive onslaught with another two-run homer and a run-scoring groundout. His remarkable performance saw him surpass Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson for the Oakland record for RBIs in a doubleheader, a feat previously achieved by Jackson in 1969.
Langeliers has amassed 21 RBIs against the Rangers, the most against any opponent.
Unfortunately, Oakland right-hander Osvaldo Bido was forced to exit his A’s debut in the top of the third inning due to a blister on his pitching hand.
The opener saw Brett Harris’s go-ahead homer and Brent Rooker’s three-run blast in the seventh inning propel the A’s to victory, backing pitcher Sears (3-2) and snapping a three-game losing streak.
Marcus Semien homered for the Rangers against his former team, while Leody Taveras provided a tiebreaking two-run shot in the fourth inning.
Langeliers continued his offensive prowess in the second game, hitting his eighth homer, doubling home two runs in the fourth, and driving in J.D. Davis with a triple in the sixth.
Langeliers had previously driven in four runs against Texas on April 9, nearly single-handedly securing a 4-3 victory for the Athletics with three homers, including a dramatic two-run shot in the ninth inning.
Pitcher Sears secured back-to-back wins for the first time this season, allowing four runs and seven hits over 5 2/3 innings.
Tyler Soderstrom contributed a two-run homer in the nightcap for Oakland, while David Robertson (2-0) earned the win for the Rangers in the second game after pitching two innings.
Texas right-hander Michael Lorenzen (2-2) struck out six over six innings in the first game but suffered his first road loss of the season, hampered by the two home runs.
