The matchup between the Boston Red Sox and Texas Rangers features a number of storylines not typical for a mid-season game. While both teams hover around .500 chasing American League greatness, they each have different headlines going into the Thursday night. Nick Martinez will be taking the mound for the Rangers and putting his unbeaten streak on the line while Josh Hamilton will make his debut back in Texas in their home game.
The last time Hamilton played in Texas, he was booed during a playoff elimination game. He went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts in a loss to the Baltimore Orioles in the 2012 AL Wild Card game. Texas blew their chances to get the AL West title and Hamilton left for a two-year stint with the Los Angeles Angels while admitting to relapsing with drugs and alcohol. Hamilton admits that he never expected to return to Texas, but is excited to be back in front of the Rangers crowd again. His first game back with the team saw him go 1-11 in Cleveland.
"I'm looking forward to being back in the area and in the ballpark and playing in front of Rangers fans again," Hamilton said, via ESPN.com. "I don't think any nerves will be there, but you never know."
Meanwhile, the Rangers' pitching is chasing a different goal as Martinez remains unbeaten on the season and hopes to keep it that way. The pitcher is 4-0 with a 1.96 ERA on the season. He is one of three pitchers in the AL to not have a loss after nine starts. IN his last start he allowed just two runs over seven innings against the New York Yankees marking his 15th straight start where he gave up fewer than three runs while getting 8.18 runs over support on average.
Meanwhile, Boston will be putting Eduardo Rodriguez on the mound as he makes his MLB debut with the team. The 22-year-old put up a 4-3 record and 2.98 ERA in eight starts down in Triple-A. He will have the pleasure of facing Prince Fielder in his debut. The Rangers star is leading the AL with a .368 batting average. He is on a six-game hit streak that includes five home runs and 15 RBI.
