Kinsler's Hot Weekend Sparks Offense

Were the Texas Rangers facing the Tampa Bay Rays' stout pitching rotation over the weekend? No.

Were they facing the rotation of one of the worst teams in all of baseball in the Minnesota Twins? Yep.

Either way, the Rangers' offense found its stroke over the weekend, thanks in large part to guys like Adrian Beltre and Mitch Moreland, and also Nelson Cruz and Josh Hamilton.

But one of the most integral parts of the Rangers' offensive weekend was leadoff hitter Ian Kinsler, who must be one of the most polarizing Rangers in recent memory — there's no middle ground on Kinsler, fans love him or hate him.

Kinsler has hit many peaks and valleys throughout the season, but right now he's up on Pikes Peak.

Over the past eight games, Kinsler is hitting .375 with three doubles, a triple, two home runs, nine RBIs and has scored seven times. In thos games, the Rangers are 6-2 and have scored 63 runs, including eight or more in five of those games. Remember, back in July the Rangers were struggling to a month where they barely cleared 80 runs for the entire month, now they're averaging nearly eight runs per game over their last eight games.

Kinsler had his best game of the weekend on Saturday, when he hit a leadoff homer then had a bases clearing triple in his second at-bat to finish with 4 RBIs. He was a double shy of hitting for the cycle just a night after Beltre did it.

Sports Connection

Connecting you to your favorite North Texas sports teams as well as sports news around the globe.

NBA world erupts after Anthony Edwards' poster on John Collins in Timberwolves-Jazz

First Four history, schedule, how to watch and more to know as March Madness begins

"This offense works when Ian Kinsler is getting on base consistently," Rangers hitting coach Scott Coolbaugh told ESPNDallas. "It starts at the top. When he finds a way to get on and create pressure on the bases, good things happen. It gets everyone rolling."

If Kinsler can stay in this "peak" for a couple of months, that would be a pretty big deal for your Texas Rangers.

Copyright FREEL - NBC Local Media
Contact Us