ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Luis Severino was a bit erratic but got through some adversity in his third start of the season for the New York Yankees. The next time he is on the mound for the AL East champions will be in the playoffs.
"All in all, enough of a buildup as we head into the playoffs," manager Aaron Boone said. "Obviously not as sharp as he was in his last two, but I thought a nice rebound from the first inning where he struggled a little bit."
Severino had four walks and a throwing error over three innings in the Yankees' 9-4 loss to the Texas Rangers on Saturday night.
Rougned Odor had a career-high six RBIs for the Rangers, including his 30th homer for a grand slam in the sixth to make it 8-1.
Odor put the Rangers ahead to stay with a two-run double in the first, the only hit and runs allowed by Severino (1-1). The right-hander had already walked two batters and committed his error on a pickoff attempt by then.
After three walks in the first inning, Severino retired seven of the last eight batters he faced. After feeling uncomfortable in the first, he struck out the side in the second — all swinging.
"In the second and third I felt more like myself," he said. "It was everything. I didn't feel like myself (in the first). ... The fastball was all over the place. Stride, I changed everything."
When asked if he was ready for the playoffs, Severino responded, "Yeah, of course. That was not my best start, but it doesn't matter. The most important thing is that I feel healthy."
Severino has pitched only 12 innings this season after recovering from a lat injury that had sidelined him since spring training. A 19-game winner in 2018, he struck out four while throwing 72 pitches against 14 Texas batters. He had tossed nine scoreless innings before that, four against the Los Angeles Angels and five against Toronto with nine strikeouts last Sunday.
The Rangers played the final night game at their ballpark before moving across the street to a new stadium next season. A day game Sunday wraps up the 26th and final season at the stadium that opened in 1994 as The Ballpark in Arlington.
Odor raised his batting average from .202 to .204, still the lowest among the 136 major league qualifiers. But he has 93 RBIs along with the 30 homers, nine in September.
"He's finishing strong. The only thing I really challenge is the season's going to end after tomorrow," manager Chris Woodward said. "I hope he has some truth and some understanding of what he's doing right now, because if this is the guy we could have all year, we'd have a superstar."