By E.J. Morales TX3DNews
Texas Rangers: Bay Area, Bad Memories
The Texas Rangers headed west this week, full of hope, fresh bubble gum, and a bullpen they thought they could trust.
First stop: Oakland, where the Athletics — a team already half-packed for Las Vegas — somehow managed to play like they were staying put.
The Rangers took the opener 8–5 thanks to a few big bats. But then things got… weird.
- April 23: The Rangers’ offense decided to take a sightseeing tour, and the A’s snagged a 5–2 win.
- April 24: In true heartbreaker fashion, the Rangers entered the ninth inning up 3–2 — and still managed to lose 4–3 after a walk-off in what the A’s called their first official “Sutter Health Park series win” (via SI.com).
From there, the Rangers rode a bus (we assume) across the Bay Bridge to San Francisco, where the scenery was nice, the garlic fries better, and the baseball… worse.
- April 25: Nathan Eovaldi pitched like a man with dinner reservations and shut out the Giants 2–0.
- April 26: The Giants eked out a 3–2 walk-off win courtesy of a Patrick Bailey single (Fox Sports).
- April 27: The Giants rubbed salt in it, stealing a 3–2 win after two Texas errors turned a routine single into a “Little League” inside-the-park special (ESPN).
Final Bay Area scorecard:
2 wins, 4 losses, and enough frustration to fill Alcatraz twice over.
On the bright side, at least nobody fell into the Bay. Progress.
Dallas Stars: A Rocky Mountain (and Emotional) Split
Meanwhile, back in playoff country, the Dallas Stars took their talents to Colorado for Games 3 and 4 against the Avalanche.
After splitting the first two games in Dallas (Game 1 loss 5–1, Game 2 win 4–3 in OT), the Stars hit the ice at Ball Arena in Denver with a mission: steal one on the road.
- Game 3 (April 23):
Tyler Seguin buried the overtime winner after a tense 1-1 battle (NHL.com).
Jake Oettinger looked like he’d strapped the Rocky Mountains onto his back, stopping 38 shots. - Game 4 (April 26):
And then Game 4 happened.
The Avalanche rolled 4–0, with Mackenzie Blackwood pitching a 26-save shutout and Gabriel Landeskog reminding everyone that, yes, he still exists.
Fun Fact:
When asked about the Game 4 loss, Stars coach Pete DeBoer simply said, “We’ll be ready for Game 5” (according to the Dallas Morning News).
Translation: burn the Game 4 tape and never speak of it again.
Now the series heads back to Dallas tied 2–2, where the Stars need to bring the pressure — and maybe, just maybe, remember that power plays are supposed to end with goals.
In Conclusion
- The Rangers survived California with their dignity dented but dreams intact.
- The Stars return to American Airlines Center ready to punch the Avalanche back where it counts.
North Texas fans:
Buckle up.
Hydrate.
And maybe keep a stress ball handy — it’s about to get wild.