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The Rangers have this April thing down.

The Rangers won for the 17th time Tuesday night, beating the Chicago White Sox 10-6, and have gone three consecutive Aprils with at least 16 wins. It's the third time in club history they've won 17 games in April. The 1989 Rangers -- with new acquisitions Nolan Ryan, Rafael Palmeiro and Julio Franco -- faded and finished 83-79. Last year's Rangers were 17-6 in April and reached the American League wild-card game.

The 1998 Rangers are the only team in club history to top that, going 18-7 in April. They went on to win the club's second AL West title before losing to the New York Yankees in the AL Division Series.

Pitching carried the Rangers this April. They have a 3.14 ERA, best in baseball. Yu Darvish was 5-0, with all the wins coming after Rangers losses. The offense was inconsistent but might be re-energized after Tuesday's 10-run outburst, which was sparked by the continued surge of Mitch Moreland and a two-run home run by Adrian Beltre.

"We're a good team. We're a very good team," Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler said. "We have a lot of guys on this team that love to win and love to play baseball. We work hard, and when you have that and you win, it snowballs. We're a good team, and we're going to continue to play good baseball and see what happens."

Other notes:

1. Opening wins: The Rangers won their eighth straight series opener going back to their loss to Houston on opening night. The Rangers have been able to grind through the schedule because of it. They are 17-0-3 in their past 20 series when winning the opener.

2. Cruising in April: Nelson Cruz carried the Rangers in the last two weeks of the month. He hit safely in nine of 12 games, and batted .364 with five home runs and 15 RBIs. He sparked the Rangers again Tuesday night with a two-out home run to left field to cut Chicago's lead to 2-1. White Sox starter Jose Quintana, who had allowed two hits before Cruz's homer, gave up five hits to the next nine Rangers batters.

3. Beltre breaks out: Beltre snapped an 0-for-11 stretch with runners in scoring position with a two-run home run to cap a six-run sixth inning. Manager Ron Washington proved prophetic, having said on "Fitzsimmons and Durrett" on ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM on Tuesday that Beltre would do something big in his fourth at-bat. The manager knows.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Yu Darvish wins after a Rangers' loss. He wins when he's not as his best.

Again on Tuesday night, he was the Rangers' ace.

Darvish found a way to get through six innings in Tuesday's 10-6 victory over the Chicago White Sox, overcoming a hanging breaking ball that No. 9 hitter Dewayne Wise hit for a game-tying two-run homer in the top of the sixth.

Darvish bounced back with his ninth strikeout of the game, fanning Alejandro De Aza on a slider. Then Darvish took a seat in the Rangers' dugout and watched as his offense put up six runs to give him his fifth victory in April.

"He's a pitcher," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "He finds something in his repertoire of pitches to find a way to get outs."

On Tuesday, that pitch was his four-seam fastball, which helped Darvish throw four shutouts innings after allowing two runs in the first. Darvish had five of his nine strikeouts during that stretch, upping his American League-leading total to 58.

Darvish allowed a season-high four runs and still boosted his record to 5-0 this season after a Rangers' loss. He's now 12-3 for his career in that situation. That's an ace.

He also became the sixth pitcher in club history to win five games in April and the first to do it since Aaron Sele and Rick Helling both pulled it off in 1998. An ace-like start.

Darvish might well have escaped the top of the first unscathed had Nelson Cruz tracked down a fly ball headed for the right-field corner. Instead it eluded Cruz's outstretched glove and Tyler Greene had a one-out triple. The White Sox turned that into two runs, but Darvish avoided giving up a big inning with a strikeout of shortstop Alexei Ramirez on a slider with runners at second and third to end the inning.

Teams have to get to Darvish in the first inning. He's allowed seven of his 10 runs in the opening frame. Even with the first-inning hiccup, and the Wise home run, Darvish ended up a winner Tuesday night.

The ace delivers yet again for the Rangers.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- The Texas Rangers overcame a slow start by both Yu Darvish and their bats to pound the Chicago White Sox 10-6 on Tuesday night at Rangers Ballpark. Texas has won seven of its past eight games at home.

Moreland coming alive: Mitch Moreland has been the Rangers' hottest hitter over the past week and he continued his surge against the White Sox. Moreland was 3-for-3, including a line-drive double to left field off a left-handed reliever, Donnie Veal, to give the Rangers a 5-4 lead in the bottom of the sixth. Moreland's three hits were against left-handed pitchers, boosting his season average to .243 against southpaws.

Kinsler drives them in: The Rangers might be struggling with runners in scoring position, but leadoff hitter Ian Kinsler isn't. He had two more RBI hits Tuesday, one to give the Rangers a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the fifth, and another a key insurance run with two outs in the sixth inning. Kinsler is up to .391 for the season with runners in scoring position. He is 4-for-11 with two outs and runners in scoring position.

Six-run sixth: The Rangers snapped a 4-4 tie, then broke the game open with a six-run sixth inning. They scored in a variety of ways. The aforementioned RBI double by Moreland and RBI single by Kinsler gave them a 6-4 lead. The Rangers loaded the bases and then White Sox reliever Nate Jones had a forgettable three-pitch sequence. He threw consecutive wild pitches to score Kinsler and Elvis Andrus. Adrian Beltre then snapped out of his slump with a two-run home run to left field for a 10-4 lead.

Back-to-back: The Rangers woke up a quiet crowd with back-to-back home runs with two outs in the bottom of the fourth. Nelson Cruz, who has carried the offense, broke through against White Sox starter Jose Quintana with his sixth home run of the season, a sky-high shot to left field. Jeff Baker, who has played his way into the lineup on a regular basis against right-handed starters, tied the game at 2-2 with a 434-foot home run to center field, his second of the season.

Taking advantage: The Rangers jumped on a mistake by the White Sox in the bottom of the fifth. Craig Gentry grounded into a fielder's choice and advanced to second on a throwing error by Chicago second baseman Tyler Greene. It worked essentially as a sacrifice, with a faster runner, Gentry, ending up at second instead of Moreland. Kinsler gave the Rangers the lead with a double inside the third-base bag. Andrus followed with a single up the middle for a 4-2 lead.

Darvish settles in: Darvish allowed two runs in the first inning on four hits. The first one, a one-out triple by Greene, should have been caught by Cruz in right field. The White Sox jumped on the opening. Alex Rios and Konerko had RBI singles to snap Darvish's 19-inning scoreless streak.

Hanging curveball: Darvish was settled in until the top of the sixth, when he had a lead-off walk and later failed to execute a 3-6-1 double play as he wasn't able to keep his foot on the first-base bag. The Rangers paid for it as No. 9 hitter Dewayne Wise connected with a hanging curveball for a two-run homer to tie the game 4-4. Wise had two hits in 22 at-bats entering Tuesday. He had three hits in three at-bats versus Darvish and was 4-for-4 for the night.

Walk-up crowd: Darvish is drawing fans to the ballpark. The Rangers had 4,000 fans walk up and purchase tickets Tuesday night as the stadium filled in nicely in the early innings. The final crowd total was 40,646.

Scheppers streak ends: Tanner Scheppers relieved Darvish in the top of the seventh and quickly saw his scoreless innings streak to start the season end. Scheppers allowed a two-out home run to Adam Dunn, ending the right-hander's streak at 12⅔ innings.

Up next: A pair of 24-year-old pitchers face off Wednesday night when Rangers right-hander Nick Tepesch (2-1, 2.52) faces White Sox left-hander Chris Sale (2-2, 4.09 ERA) at 7:05 p.m. on ESPN-FM 103.3 FM and 1540-AM.

The Rangers are back in Arlington to open a three-game series against the White Sox on Tuesday night. Yu Darvish will take the mound against Jose Quintana as Texas looks to snap a two-game skid. The lineups:

RANGERS

PODCAST
Tanner Scheppers joins Matt Mosley and Chuck Cooperstein to discuss pitching for the Rangers and what it's like watching Yu Darvish. Listen

2B Ian Kinsler
SS Elvis Andrus
DH Lance Berkman
3B Adrian Beltre
RF Nelson Cruz
LF Jeff Baker
C Geovany Soto
1B Mitch Moreland
CF Craig Gentry

WHITE SOX

CF Alejando De Aza
2B Tyler Greene
RF Alex Rios
1B Adam Dunn
DH Paul Konerko
3B Conor Gillaspie
SS Alexei Ramirez
C Hector Gimenez
CF Jordan Danks

MINNEAPOLIS -- Two starters coming off back-to-back wins will square off as the Texas Rangers' Yu Darvish opposes the Chicago White Sox's Jose Quintana on Tuesday in the opener of a three-game set. First pitch is at 7:05 p.m. CT on Fox Sports Southwest and ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM, with the Spanish broadcast on 1540 AM.

PODCAST
Ron Washington joins Fitzsimmons & Durrett to discuss Yu Darvish, the Rangers' recent losses and if the notion that the team looked fatigued is warranted this early in the season. Listen

Darvish (4-1, 1.65 ERA): Darvish, 26, has gone back-to-back outings and a total of 18 consecutive innings going back three starts without allowing a run. … He struck out 11 over six innings his last time out in an 11-3 win over the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday. The right-hander has notched double-digit strikeouts in back-to-back games. He has yet to strike out 10 or more hitters in three consecutive starts in his major league career. … Darvish faced Chicago once last season and was saddled with the loss after allowing six runs – five earned – on eight hits and three walks with six strikeouts in 6 1/3 innings on July 27. … Darvish is 5-0 in seven regular-season home starts since losing to the White Sox.

Quintana (2-0, 2.78 ERA): The left-hander lasted just five innings against Cleveland in his last outing but got the win in Chicago’s 3-2 victory after allowing two runs on four hits and two walks with three strikeouts. … Quintana’s three strikeouts against the Indians tied a season low. … The 24-year-old picked up the win in his only career outing against Texas last season, allowing one run on just two hits and a walk while striking out eight through eight innings on July 5. … Quintana has yet to allow an earned run on the road this season, having given up a combined six hits and two walks in 13 2/3 innings with 14 strikeouts against Cleveland and Toronto. Quintana was better on the road (3.42 ERA in 12 appearances) than at home (4.13 ERA in 13 appearances) last season.

Hitters: Gordon Beckham (2-for-3) is the only White Sox player with multiple hits or an extra base hit against Darvish, but he’s on the disabled list with a fractured hamate bone in his left wrist. Rangers hitters are a combined 2-for-19 against Quintana. Adrian Beltre and Ian Kinsler own the only two hits.

Up Next:

Wednesday vs. Chicago: RHP Nick Tepesch (2-1, 2.53) vs. LHP Chris Sale (2-2, 4.09), 7:05 p.m. CT, ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM/1540 AM/FSSW
Thursday vs. Chicago: RHP Justin Grimm (2-0, 1.59) vs. RHP Jake Peavy (3-1, 3.38) 7:05 p.m. CT, ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM/1540 AM/FSSW

The Texas Rangers and Chicago White Sox play their only three-game series at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington beginning Tuesday night.

PODCAST
Ron Washington joins Fitzsimmons & Durrett to discuss Yu Darvish, the Rangers' recent losses and if the notion that the team looked fatigued is warranted this early in the season. Listen

The White Sox will throw three quality starters at the Rangers -- left-handers Jose Quintana (2-0, 2.78 ERA) and Chris Sale (2-2, 4.09) and right-hander Jake Peavy (3-1, 3.38). The Rangers will counter with Yu Darvish (4-1, 1.65) on Tuesday night, followed by rookie right-handers Nick Tepesch (2-1, 2.53) and Justin Grimm (2-0, 1.59).

Here's some other things to look for:

Strong starting pitching: The White Sox's starting rotation has been the team's strength. Sox starters have a 3.03 ERA over the last 13 games with a 5-3 record during that span. Peavy is tied for sixth in the American League with 39 strikeouts. Overall, Chicago is fourth in the AL with a 3.60 team ERA. The Rangers are first with a 3.02 ERA.

Where's the offense?: The White Sox are last in the AL in batting average at .229 and 13th out of 15 teams with a .382 slugging percentage. They are last in the AL in runs (83), walks (54) and hitting with runners in scoring position (.188). The White Sox have scored two runs or less seven times this season. They've been held to five or fewer hits seven times, too.

Pair of sluggers: Paul Konerko and Adam Dunn rank fourth and fifth among active players in home runs. Konerko, who is fourth, hit his 426th home run Sunday, putting him in a tie for 45th overall behind Chicago Cubs great Billy Williams. Dunn has 411 home runs, ranking him 48th all-time, three behind Darrell Evans. Konerko and Dunn have combined for nine home runs this season.

Sox look for 2012 repeat: The White Sox had a 6-3 record against the Rangers in 2012, their first season series victory over Texas since 2004. Chicago won five straight games in July, including a three-game sweep at U.S. Cellular Field on July 3-5. The Rangers and White Sox split six games at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – The Texas Rangers did far more crediting of the Minnesota Twins pitching than they did their own fatigue after losing back-to-back games for the first time this season.

That said, they’re looking forward to their off day Monday.

Texas had just one day off since April 4, and 14 of their last 17 games have come on the road.

“You always look forward to off days,” catcher A.J. Pierzynski said. “They certainly are precious when you play this many games.”

The Rangers did have a brief three-game respite in Arlington against Seattle from April 19 through 21, but it still was part of what’s been a hectic travel schedule.

After finishing a six-game homestand on April 10, Texas went to Seattle for four games before an off day, then to Chicago for three against the Cubs, then back home for the three against the Mariners, then to Los Angeles for three against the Angels, and finally to Minnesota for it’s just-completed four-game stretch.

As an added bonus, Wednesday’s game against Los Angeles was an evening contest, meaning the Rangers arrived just before 7 a.m. on Thursday for the series with the Twins, which started Thursday night.

“The off day is definitely needed right now,” manager Ron Washington said. “The stretch is what it is. It’s the schedule and you play the schedule. It’s the big leagues, so we can’t be complaining about the schedule.”

Monday is one of two book-end off days sandwiching three-game series against the Sox – first White, then Red. In all it means eight consecutive days at home for Texas to recharge before an eight-game, three-city road trip.

“It seems like we haven’t been home in forever with the way the schedule is set up,” Pierzynski said. “We were home 3 days and gone a month it seems like. It’ll be nice to get home, get an off day at home and relax, get away from baseball for a day. Just get back to hopefully a little bit of normalcy and come back ready to go on Tuesday.”

Now for a few more Rangers notes:

1. Darvish follows lose again: Yu Darvish will pitch for the fifth time in six starts following a Rangers' loss. He is 4-0 in that situation this season and 11-3 for his career.

2. Kinsler's next steal: Second baseman Ian Kinsler didn't steal a base Sunday, but his next one will be historical. His next stolen base with give him 161 for his career, tying him with Bump Wills for the all-time franchise record.

3. One streak over: The Rangers streak without consecutive losses ended this weekend in the Twin Cities. They still have either won or split every series so far this season. They've won five series and split three.

MINNEAPOLIS -- The Texas Rangers were shut out for just the second time and lost back-to-back games for the first time this season as the Minnesota Twins won 5-0 on Sunday.

Walks will haunt: Rangers starter Alexi Ogando walked Josh Willingham twice Sunday, and Willingham scored both times. He was walked with one out in the fourth inning and came home on a Chris Parmelee sacrifice fly two batters later. Ogando walked Willingham with two outs in the sixth inning, but Justin Morneau hit his next offering into the right-field seats for a two-run homer.

Ogando still managed a quality start, allowing three runs on four hits and two walks in six innings with three strikeouts. After giving up just two earned runs in his first three starts this season, Ogando has allowed 10 in his past three. The right-hander is 0-2 with a 5.87 ERA in that stretch.

Still undefeated: The Rangers appeared poised to win their sixth series of the season by taking the first two against Minnesota but settled for a series split after losses Saturday and Sunday. Texas is still undefeated in series play this season with a 5-0-3 mark.

Runs at a premium: The Rangers scored two runs or less in three of their four games against Minnesota and just eight total in the four-game series. Their only lower series mark was six runs, but that was in a two-game set against the Chicago Cubs.

Texas went 0-for-5 Sunday and just 4-for-31 in the series with runners in scoring position.

Basepath blunders: Mitch Moreland continued a disturbing trend of Texas making outs on the basepaths. Moreland singled with one out in the third inning when Aaron Hicks misplayed his fly ball. But Moreland ran halfway to second base before turning around as Hicks recovered and threw to Brian Dozier. Dozier quickly relayed to Morneau, who tagged Moreland for the second out. Leonys Martin followed with a single, so instead of two on with one out, there was one on with two out. Ian Kinsler ended the inning with a groundout to second.

The Rangers made seven outs on the bases in the first three games against the Twins.

Solving Mauer: Twins catcher Joe Mauer entered the series with Texas hitting .366, but Rangers pitching held him to 0-for-15 in the four games to drop his average to .302.

Ortiz struggles: Joe Ortiz entered the series with a 1.42 ERA but saw that number jump to 4.05 after allowing four runs in two appearances (2/3 IP). The left-hander had allowed just two earned runs in his first eight outings.

Daydreaming: Sunday’s loss dropped the Rangers to 3-6 in day games this season. Texas is 13-3 at night.

Up next: The Rangers start a three-game set against the Chicago White Sox in Arlington as right-hander Yu Darvish (4-1, 1.65 ERA) takes the hill against Chicago left-hander Jose Quintana (2-0, 2.78 ERA) at 7:05 p.m. Tuesday night on Fox Sports Southwest and ESPN 103.3 FM and 1540 AM.

MINNEAPOLIS -- Nelson Cruz’s work with the bat has been impressive. But perhaps even more important has been his ability to stay on the field.

Cruz revamped his offseason routine prior to the 2012 season and it paid off as he played in a career-best 159 games. On Sunday, Cruz is in the lineup for the 25th time in 25 games this season -- one of only three Texas Rangers who can make the claim.

For Cruz, it’s simply a matter of understanding his body.

“You know what you need to do to prepare,” Cruz said. “Sometimes your body tells you you need to rest. You have to make sure you’re loose for the games, make sure you work out during the season, outside the season.”

Cruz said he’s extra diligent with his hamstring and quads, which conspired among other maladies to limit him to an average of 113 games from 2009 to 2011, with 128 games his career high until last season.

The resulting health has put Cruz in position to be among the league’s offensive leaders in several categories. His 19 RBI are tied for fifth in the American League, his five home runs are tied for 13th and his .322 batting average is good for 13th, as well.

And thanks to Cruz’s renewed focus on staying healthy, manager Ron Washington has been less tempted to pull him out of the lineup for maintenance days.

“He’s an animal, look at him,” Washington said. “At some point I’m going to give him a day off, but I got him a day DHing, and I’ll get him another day DHing. It’s just that he’s been productive, and sometimes it’s hard to pull that out of the lineup.”

Cruz is in the midst of a five-game hitting streak and has reached base safely in seven straight contests. Saturday’s game snapped a six-game RBI streak in which he drove in 13 runs.

Lineup staples: In addition to Cruz, Adrian Beltre and Mitch Moreland have been in the lineup every game this season. Moreland’s career high is 134 games played for the 2011 Rangers. Beltre has played in 152 or more games eight times in his career, including 156 for Texas last season. His career high of 159 games came for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2002.

Elvis Andrus, David Murphy and Ian Kinsler have played in every game but one this season. Washington considered sitting Kinsler on Sunday, but the Rangers’ second baseman resisted with an off day scheduled for Tuesday.

Strikeout guy: Tuesday’s starter, Yu Darvish, leads all of baseball with 49 strikeouts this season. But he’s also topped seven innings just once and pitched six or fewer innings in three of his five starts.

It comes with the territory for strikeout pitchers, and Washington certainly isn’t complaining. But that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t mind seeing fewer pitches and longer outings from his right-hander.

“If you can strike out a guy out in a certain situation, I love a strikeout,” Washington said. “But you can be striking out 17 or 18 guys and you’re throwing a lot of pitches. All you have to do is throw one pitch and you can get a ground ball and get a guy out.”

But Darvish fans need not worry about Washington and the Rangers trying to tweak the 26-year-old’s approach.

“Yu’s a strikeout guy,” Washington said. “I’d like to see him get some quick outs, but I’m not going to try to change him. I’m saying that to me, saying that to the pitching coach. I’m not saying that to Yu Darvish.”

Shortstop Elvis Andrus' defense is so good sometimes it can be taken for granted. Pitcher Yu Darvish is athletic enough to field his position.

Both made spectacular bare-handed plays in the last week that can easily be taken for granted.

Andrus' bare-handed play in the seventh inning against the Los Angeles Angels came on a high chopper by Mark Trumbo for the second out of the inning. Andrus positioned his body perfectly to field the ball with his right hand and make the throw in one motion. He was shaking his hand for several seconds after the play. The Rangers went on to win 5-4.

Darvish made his play in his start against the Seattle Mariners last Friday. With the Mariners' Endy Chavez trying to bunt for a hit, Darvish bolted off the mound and fielded the ball near the third base line and whipped a throw to first base to nip the speedy Seattle center fielder. Darvish looked like Andrus making a throw from shortstop. Darvish ended up the winning pitcher as the Rangers beat the Mariners 5-0.

The Rangers are off to a strong start defensively, ranking fifth in baseball with a .900 team fielding percentage.

"We've played pretty well," second baseman Ian Kinsler said. "Elvis is growing up. Beltre is a two-time platinum Gold Glove winner. I'd like to think I'm a good defensive player. Mitch is a very solid first baseman. It's no surprise to us. We believe that we're very good defensively. I guess we just have to prove it."

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- The Texas Rangers' best offensive inning of the young season centered around patience.

That is, until Nelson Cruz took the aggressive route.

PODCAST
Jim Bowden discusses the state of the Rangers rotation, Mitch Moreland's struggles, the weaknesses of the team and if Jurickson Profar should have been shipped during the offseason. Listen

The Rangers sent 13 batters to the plate in the fourth inning of Wednesday night's 11-3, series-clinching victory against the Los Angeles Angels. It was the most plate appearances in a frame since last April. They managed nine runs, the most in a road-game inning since 2007.

And it began with restraint, as Adrian Beltre opened the frame by drawing his first of two walks.

"How weird is that?" Beltre asked reporters. "Two walks? Is that a record? Two walks in an inning? I think for me it is."

Cruz followed with a single, sparking a sequence that proved to be the turning point against rookie left-hander Michael Roth, the Angels' ninth-round selection in last year's amateur draft whose only other start this season came at Double-A Arkansas.

In all, there were five walks and five base hits in the fourth. Cruz sent fans to the exits with a broken-bat homer to left-center field that made it 9-0.

"When he gets through the baseball, it doesn't matter if the bat holds together or not," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "He showed you what his strength is all about."

Cruz showed smarts, as well.

"When you see a guy struggling to find the strike zone, sometimes it's good to be aggressive," Beltre said. "Sometimes you get a good pitch to hit, and [Cruz] did. You assume he's going to throw a fastball, and he did."

The Rangers enjoyed very productive at-bats with runners in scoring position, going 5-for-9 in those situations one night after a weak 1-for-13 effort.

The lead grew to 11-0 by the time Yu Darvish, who tossed six scoreless innings, left the game. A light drizzle blanketed Angel Stadium in the seventh, but it had begun to pour long before then as the Rangers won yet another series.

"Adrian got on base, Nelson got him to third and it kind of snowballed from there," said A.J. Pierzynski, who singled and walked in the fourth. "Adrian had another good at-bat later, and it culminated with Nelson hitting a big home run. It was big."

Beltre smiled when asked if he had ever hit a broken-bat blast like Cruz did.

"I'm not that strong," he said.

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Nelson Cruz broke his bat on a three-run homer to cap a nine-run fourth inning, guiding the Texas Rangers to a series victory against the Los Angeles Angels with a 11-3 win on Wednesday night.

Floodgates, opened: The Rangers chased rookie left-hander Michael Roth -- a ninth-round selection in last year's draft making his first career start -- in the fourth, sending 13 batters to the plate on the strength of five walks. Cruz delivered the dagger, lifting the first pitch he saw from David Carpenter over the wall in left-center field. Before beginning his trip around the bases, Cruz smiled toward the dugout and gestured that his bat had cracked.

A long frame: The nine runs in the fourth were the most scored by Texas in an inning since Aug. 22, 2012 against Baltimore, the most runs in a road game inning since Aug. 22, 2007, and the most plate appearances in an inning since April of last year.

Ace comes through: For the fourth time this season, Yu Darvish followed a Rangers loss with a win. The right-hander had been 3-0 with a 1.31 ERA pitching in games after a Rangers loss, and surely improved those numbers with six shutout innings Wednesday. Texas is still the only team in baseball that hasn't lost two straight games.

How Yu did it: Darvish had a pitch clocked as high as 98 mph and as low as 61 to keep Angels hitters off balance yet again. He struck out 11, reaching double-digit punchouts for the 11th time in his career and improving his career record against the Halos to 5-1, including 3-1 at Angel Stadium.

Berkman gets his second: Lance Berkman homered for the first time since April 7 and registered his first multihit game since April 9. Before the game, manager Ron Washington said this weekend's weather conditions in Minnesota would determine whether the switch-hitting Berkman, 37, gets a day off, but the designated hitter appears to be finding his groove.

Up next: Nick Tepesch (1-1, 3.07 ERA) looks to bounce back from last week's abrupt ending. Twins right-hander Vance Worley (0-2, 7.11 ERA) is scheduled to take the mound in the opener of the four-game set. First pitch is 7:10 p.m. CT on Fox Sports Southwest, ESPN-FM 103.3 and 1540 AM.

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- The Texas Rangers and Los Angeles Angels play the rubber match tonight at Angel Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 9:05 p.m. CT on ESPN 103.3 FM. Here's a look at the pitching matchup, featuring Rangers RHP Yu Darvish and Angels LHP Michael Roth.

Darvish (3-1, 2.03 ERA): Struck out 10 and gave up three hits in seven shutout against the Seattle Mariners in his last outing. ... His 38 strikeouts rank first in the American League. ... Darvish has not given up a home run this season. ... Has a 4-1 record and 4.36 ERA in seven career starts against the Angels.

Roth (1-0, 3.60 ERA): Scheduled to make his first career start. ... Gave up a base hit to the only batter he faced on Monday night, Lance Berkman. ... Earned a win in his major league debut on April 13, becoming the first Angels reliever to win his debut since 1983. ... Made one start this season with double-A Arkansas, throwing five shutout innings and striking out three. ... Was the Angels' ninth-round selection in the 2012 amateur draft out of South Carolina, which won the College World Series in 2010 and 2011.

Hitters: Mike Trout (6-for-19, 2 HRs, 4 RBIs and 5 BBs) has been successful against Darvish, while Josh Hamilton went 2-for-3 on April 7 when he faced the Japanese right-hander for the first time. ... Alberto Callaspo (7-for-16) is on the 15-day disabled list because of a right calf strain. ... Howie Kendrick (0-for-12, 5 Ks) and Mark Trumbo (3-for-18) have struggled against Darvish. ... Berkman singled against Roth on Monday. He was the only Texas player Roth faced.

Up next

-- Thursday at Minnesotta Twins: RHP Nick Tepesch (1-1, 3.07) vs. RHP Vance Worley (0-2, 7.11), 7:10 p.m. CT, ESPN-FM 103.3/1540 AM/Fox Sports Southwest

-- Friday at Minnesotta: RHP Justin Grimm (1-0, 2.70) vs. LHP Scott Diamond (1-1, 4.35), 7:10 p.m. CT, ESPN-FM 103.3/1540 AM/TXA21

-- Saturday at Minnesotta: LHP Derek Holland (1-1, 3.25) vs. Pedro Hernandez (0-0, 3.86), 3:10 p.m. CT, ESPN-FM 103.3/1270 AM/Fox Sports Southwest

Yu Darvish has been in this position before -- starting the day or night after a Texas Rangers loss.

He's flourished in that situation so far this season.

Darvish will have his fourth chance in five starts to win following a Rangers loss. So far he's 3-0 with a 1.31 ERA in those situations. Texas is the only team in baseball that hasn't lost two games in a row, and Darvish is as big a reason as any.

PODCAST
Jim Bowden discusses the state of the Rangers rotation, Mitch Moreland's struggles, the weaknesses of the team and if Jurickson Profar should have been shipped during the offseason. Listen

An ace's biggest task is being a club's stopper and keeping his team from going on long losing streaks. With Matt Harrison's average of 17 wins the last two seasons out of the rotation and two rookies in -- as effectively as Justin Grimm and Nick Tepesch have pitched, they've made a combined seven career starts -- the onus is on Darvish, Derek Holland and Alexi Ogando. The Rangers are trying to maintain their early-season trend of winning series (they're 4-0 with two splits heading into Wednesday's rubber game against the Angels).

Darvish should be in prime position to beat the Angels on Wednesday night. He has pitched well in Anaheim, where he is 2-1 with a 2.11 ERA and .171 batting average against in three starts.

Also, Angels starter Tommy Hanson, who was scheduled for Wednesday, is on the club's bereavement list. So left-hander Michael Roth, who was pitching in college at South Carolina this time last year, will make the start for the Angels.

Darvish versus Roth is a huge mismatch.

The Angels have burned through their bullpen the last five games, using relievers for 19 innings. Closer Ernesto Frieri has appeared in three straight games, so he won't be available Wednesday.

It's a big advantage for Darvish, who gets another shot at doing what he's done best this year -- winning after a Rangers loss.

ARLINGTON, Texas -- Yu Darvish has three wins this season, all after Rangers losses.

That's an ace, right?

It's exactly what the Rangers needed Friday night from Darvish, who dominated in a 7-0 victory over Seattle just hours after the club found out that Opening Day starter Matt Harrison is out until the All-Star break at best.

That puts extra pressure on Darvish, even if he said it's on all of the starters while Harrison is out. The Rangers suffered a lackluster 6-2 loss to the Chicago Cubs on Thursday. They have rookie starters Nick Tepesch and Justin Grimm going on Saturday and Sunday.

Faced with that uncertainty, Darvish came up big Friday night. He allowed three hits and had 10 strikeouts in seven strong innings. It's the first time he's gone past the fifth inning since his near-perfect game in Houston on April 2.

"You never want to get a losing streak," Rangers catcher A.J. Pierzynski said. "You always want to end it after one loss. He did that in Houston. He's done that a few times for us. He has the ability to because he has all the pitches and everything going for him. It's good to have a guy like that, but [Derek] Holland's capable of that. [Alexi] Ogando is. All of our guys are capable of it."

Darvish has been the most reliable starter this season. He's followed up half the Rangers' losses with victories. He was asked after the game if he was aware of when he has the opportunity to stop a losing streak. Does it give him extra focus?

"I try to win every game and give my team a chance to win every game," Darvish said. "It's not like I'm going to be starting every game. All of the starters have to do their jobs. Whenever Harrison comes back, I hope he's back to his normal pitching style."

On Friday night, Darvish didn't have command of his fastball in the first two innings, and it helped him more than it hurt him. He got all six of his outs on strikeouts as his cutter was darting down early on.

He didn't have a great feel for his fastball as he walked two in the first two innings, but his command improved as he pitched deeper into the game.

Darvish had three ground ball outs in the sixth inning. He used his two-seam fastball to get strikeouts and a ground out in the sixth inning. He also used his changeup and curveball to keep the ball on the ground in the inning. Darvish was most proud of a sinker he threw to get slugger Michael Morse on a ground ball to third base for the last out of the inning.

"I was able to throw my two-seam fastball for ground balls," Darvish said. "It was a positive outing."