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ARLINGTON, Texas -- Yu Darvish returned to his dominant form. cheap jerseys . The star pitcher allowed just four hits over eight sharp innings and the Texas Rangers beat Minnesota 5-0 on Saturday, handing the Twins their fifth straight loss. Darvish (8-4) allowed only one hit and one walk after the second inning in lowering his earned run average to 2.42 following two consecutive defeats and his home ERA to 1.83. With 10 strikeouts, he hit double digits for the fifth in his last eight starts. Adrian Beltre had three hits for the Rangers and scored Texas first run, which proved to be all the Rangers needed, in the second inning. Shin-Soo Chin and Leonys Martin added two hits each. "I thought he was Yu Darvish again," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "I dont care how good you are. There will be bumps in the road. There will be times when things dont go right. And that even can happen for Yu Darvish. It was good for him to go out there today and find his pitches that worked." Darvish, though, said he was unable to find a comfortable delivery throughout the game. "I just couldnt find the right one today," he said through an interpreter, "but I managed to pitch those eight innings. I cant say I was disappointed." No matter the delivery, Darvish frustrated the Twins with a cut fastball that was particularly effective against lefties. "Id say (Darvishs cutter) is probably his best pitch," said Twins DH Joe Mauer, whose first-inning single extended his hitting streak to a season-high nine games. "He can definitely make the ball move in a lot of different directions." Phil Hughes (8-4) lost for only the second time in eight road starts this season, allowing all five runs on 11 hits in 7 2-3 innings. "Its not been going our way as of late," Twins leftfielder Chris Parmelee said, "but our hitting will come around." Neal Cotts finished for Texas in a non-save situation and retired the side in order. The Rangers have won the first two of the three-game weekend series with the Twins following a season-long eight-game losing streak. The shutout was Texas 14 of the season, tops in the American League and one short of the St. Louis Cardinals major league leading total. Beltre scored on a double by Chris Gimenez on a fly to straight-away centre that sailed just beyond the reach of Sam Fuld. The Rangers added a second run in the third inning when Rougned Odor singled, stole second, advanced on an infield out and scored on a dribbler back to the mound by Elvis Andrus. The Rangers added three insurance runs in the eighth, one on a squeeze bunt by rookie Luis Sardinas. They chased Hughes, who went into the game with a 1.52 ERA in five previous career appearances at Globe Life Park. Darvishs strong outing followed a quality start by Nick Tepesch on Friday night to give Texas consecutive quality starts for the first time since June 14-15. The Twins put runners at second and third in the second inning on singles by Oswaldo Arcia and Parmelee. No. 9 batter Pedro Florimon, hitless in his previous 18 at-bats, flied out to centre with two away to end what proved to be Minnesotas only threat of the game. Notes: Rangers OF Alex Rios, hitless in his last 15 at-bats, was given a day off after playing all 126 games since being acquired last Aug. 9 from the Chicago White Sox ... Texas LHP Derek Holland threw a 67-pitch simulated game on Saturday, but the club isnt ready to start him on a rehab assignment. ...Minnesotas Sunday starter, Kyle Gibson, shut out Texas over six innings on May 28. cheap jerseys from china . A goal machine for the MLS team when healthy, the former striker is back in his native Netherlands these days. cheap nfl jerseys . The Kings were beaten on a goal by Logan Couture after the Sharks played the entire 89 seconds of overtime on the power play. The Kings were received penalties for both hooking and goaltender interference in the final minute of regulation play.Winnipeg Goldeyes manager Rick Forney announced on Friday the signing of infielder Josh Mazzola to a contract for the 2014 season. Mazzola, 27, has claimed the Goldeyes Budweiser MVP award in each of his first two seasons with the team. He saw action in 100 games for the Goldeyes last season, hitting .293 with a team leading 16 home runs and 64 RBI. Defensively, he moved to shortstop midway through last season and appeared in 51 games at short, despite never playing the position previously in his career. He also saw action at first base, third base, right field and centre field. "Hes been super productive for us for the two seasons that weve had him and I absolutely love his versatility, both offfensively and defensively," Forney said. wholesale jerseys. . "I am not sure there are many players in this league that could play every position on the field, with the exception of catcher." During the past two seasons, Mazzola has played in 198 games for the Goldeyes. He has a .300 career batting average with the Fish, while hitting 34 home runs and driving in 138 runs. Prior to coming in Winnipeg, Mazzola spent three seasons in the San Francisco Giants organization, after signing with the Giants as a free agent following his collegiate career at Missouri State. The Goldeyes now have five players signed for the 2014 season, including three pitchers and two position players. cheap jerseys ' ' ' |
