Tepesch Better, Not Good Enough

After two subpar starts, Texas Rangers starter Nick Tepesch needed to get back to where he was early last month when he was stringing together consecutive starts of seven innings and two runs allowed. In taking the hill again on Wednesday night, Tepesch was looking to get back to that form against the same Royals team that gave him so much trouble last week in Arlington.

The results were better as Tepesch was pitching near his hometown of Blue Spring, Missouri, but he still allowed four earned runs in 6 1/3 innings. That coupled with another lackluster offensive showing led to a Royals sweep of the Rangers as they head back to Arlington to start their second-to-last homestand of the season.

Tepesch was actually quite solid. He allowed a two-run home run to Alex Gordon in the fourth inning after retiring his first eight batters faced, and then went on to retire eight of nine before running into more trouble in the seventh and losing his bid at a quality start (six innings pitched minimum, three runs allowed maximum).

Tepesch will get his next start at home against the Angels next week and after that should have three more through the end of the season. He's a guy worth watching down the stretch to see how he figures into the Rangers' 2015 plans.

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