Adolis Garcia and Willie Calhoun homered as the Texas Rangers ended a six-game losing streak with a 5-2 win over the New York Yankees on Monday night, denying Gerrit Cole's bid to become the American League's first six-game winner.
Cole (5-2) allowed season highs of five runs and seven hits, getting pulled after Garcia led off the sixth with a sharp single on the right-hander's 89th pitch. Cole struck out seven, but also issued two free passes after walking none over his previous five starts.
Garcia's 11th homer was an opposite-field shot leading off the second, and was the first of three consecutive extra-base hits. David Dahl and Isiah Kiner-Falefa followed with back-to-back doubles that made it 2-1 and put Texas ahead to stay. Garcia stole home, part of a double steal with two outs in the sixth after Cole exited, for a 5-1 lead.
The Rangers, coming off their first winless road trip of at least six games since 1991, hadn't won since their previous home game, May 9 against Seattle when they reached .500 for the second time this season.
Get DFW local news, weather forecasts and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC DFW newsletters.
Jordan Lyles (2-3) struck out six in six innings for his first win in eight starts since winning his season debut April 4. Three of the first four Yankees batters had singles, and Gio Urshela's run-scoring hit put them ahead 1-0. But they got only one other runner past first base against the Texas right-hander.
Ian Kennedy worked a perfect ninth for his AL-leading 11th save in 11 chances.
Luke Voit's first homer of the season was a solo shot in the Yankees' eighth.
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
Calhoun, who had a double leading off the first, hit his fifth homer to open the fifth.
Cole's franchise record-matching streak of 12 consecutive starts allowing two earned runs or less ended, keeping him tied with Whitey Ford (1963) and Chad Green (2017-19). Cole also snapped a run of five starts in a row going at least six innings and not walking a batter, one off the team record David Wells set 18 years ago.
Cole's span of 41 2/3 innings without a walk since April 12 ended when Joey Gallo reached with one out in the third. The ball got past catcher Kyle Higashioka, and Gallo took off and rounded first base before tripping and then having to scamper back to the bag to avoid an embarrassing out.
The Rangers announced they have passed the 85% COVID-19 vaccination threshold for Tier 1 players and staff. That means some of MLB's coronavirus protocols will be relaxed for the team, including some restrictions on road trips.
