THE TEXAS Rangers have won baseball’s World Series for the first time after clinching a 4-1 series victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks.
A 5-0 win in game five sealed the series, capped off by a two-run home run from Marcus Semien in the ninth inning.
Mitch Garver’s RBI single in the seventh inning opened the scoring after Corey Seager had claimed the Rangers first hit of the night, following six innings without one against Diamondbacks starter Zach Gallen.
They stretched that to 3-0 in the ninth inning before Semien added the final blow.
After splitting the first two matches of the series, the Rangers won all three of the games in Arizona as they went through the entire postseason unbeaten in 11 games on the road.
Starting pitcher Nathan Eovaldi, who won a World Series ring with the Boston Red Sox in 2018 and moved to the Rangers before the start of the season, threw six scoreless innings and the bullpen completed the job.
Corey Saeger became just the fourth player ever to win the World Series MVP award twice, alongside hall of famers Reggie Jackson, Sandy Koufax and Bob Gibson.
The series win comes after 63 years of trying and 12 years after they were twice one strike away from winning against the St Louis Cardinals.
It is a fourth success for manager Bruce Bochy, who won three World Series in charge of the San Francisco Giants – including victory over the Rangers in 2010.
