Make no bones about it.
Sunday night's nationally televised game was the biggest of the season, so far, for your Texas Rangers.
A loss to the rival Los Angeles Angels would've meant a one-game division lead for the Rangers and a series loss to the Angels in Arlington.
Instead, Josh Hamilton, the reigning AL MVP, took control of the game and broke out of a slump with three hits and three RBIs and the Rangers now are back up to a three-game lead over the Angels in the AL West.
Hamilton had a key RBI single in a seventh-inning offensive outburst after briefly tying the game off of Jered Weaver in the third inning with a line drive blast over the wall in dead center. It was the first home run Hamilton had ever hit off of Weaver.
It's a great sign for Hamilton, who was in a 3-for-21 slump over the Rangers' homestand entering the night.
In order for the Rangers to make a run and duplicate what they did last season, they're going to need Hamilton to put on his Superman cape.
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With Adrian Beltre about to start rehabbing an injury, and Nelson Cruz tweaking a hamstring on Sunday night, the Rangers will need all the help they can get on offense and that's going to start with Hamilton.
Let's hope Sunday night was some positive foreshadowing of what's to come for the guy they call "The Natural."
