Rangers clinch AL West title with win over Angels in Game 162
The Rangers prevailed at home on Sunday and celebrated an AL West crown in front of the home crowd.
By
Dayn Perry
•
1 min read
The day after blowing a four-run ninth-inning lead against the Angels, the Rangers finally got the win they needed. Sunday's 9-2 win over the Angels (box score) clinched the AL West title for Texas.
This marks the Rangers' first division title since 2011 and sixth overall. They'd previously clinched their seventh playoff appearance in franchise history. In large part, the Rangers find themselves atop the division thanks to a 46-28 mark in the second half. Also critical was their 13-6 mark against the second-place Astros this season.
The Rangers of course were coming off a 95-loss season in 2014, and they lost ace Yu Darvish in the offseason to Tommy John surgery. On that front, ManGamesLost.com estimates that the Rangers this season have lost almost 10 WAR to injuries -- the third highest total in all of baseball. Still and yet, Jeff Banister's club overcame all of that and an eight-game deficit as recently as Aug. 2 to raise the flag.
As for the playoff road ahead, the SportsLine Projection Model coming into Sunday gave Texas just a 3.2 percent chance of winning the World Series. Of course, the 2015 Rangers are accustomed to defying expectations for the better. Speaking of which, the Rangers will face the Blue Jays in the ALDS.
