(SportsNetwork.com) - The Texas Rangers look to cap off their three-game series against the New York Yankees on a high note Sunday in the Bronx.
Texas has scored 25 runs against New York in the last two days, and will try to shut down the hosts once again as it aims for the series sweep.
Veteran Chris Capuano will make his second start of the season for the Yankees, hoping for a better showing than his first outing. He'll square off against Yovani Gallardo.
Gallardo was rocked by Boston on Tuesday in his last start, giving up 10 hits and four runs over the course of his five innings on the mound. He was hit with the loss as the Sox took a 4-3 victory. It was Gallardo's fifth loss in his last six outings.
The skid leaves Gallardo with a less-than-favorable record of 3-6 as he gets set for Sunday's match. The 29-year-old righty has a 4.26 earned run average and 34 strikeouts compared to 15 walks in 50 2/3 innings of work.
Gallardo's only start against New York in his career wasn't very effective. He surrendered four runs on five hits in 5 2/3 innings on the mound, but managed to fan seven batters.
Capuano made it through just three-plus innings against Kansas City in his first and only appearance of the season last Sunday. He gave up four runs on four hits and struck out four batters in the 6-0 Yankees loss. He's 0-1 this season with a 12.0 ERA.
He's made four appearances against Texas in his career with just one other start. He's 0-1 against the Rangers lifetime with a 10.57 ERA. Capuano pitched twice in relief against Texas last season, and allowed two runs in 2 2/3 innings.
Everything was quiet in the first two innings of Saturday afternoon's contest, but the Rangers exploded for 10 runs in the third that propelled them to an eventual 15-4 victory over the Yankees.
Shin-Soo Choo drove in four runs in the contest, and they all came in the third inning. His one-run single to center got the ball rolling for the Rangers, and later in the third he sent a three-run home run to left field.
Texas got three more runs in the sixth inning, and Prince Fielder, who belted two homers Friday night, sent a two-run shot to right field in the seventh to close out the team's scoring. Texas had a 15-1 advantage at that point.
"Our guys have been working on a lot of things since spring training and you can really see that it's starting to pay off," Rangers manager Jeff Banister said. "I'm really proud of the effort they have put in."
The Yankees added three runs in the final innings, helped by a Didi Gregorius homer. But there was no coming back for the hosts, which has dropped five in a row and nine of the last 10 games. The Yanks are still 1 1/2 games off the AL East lead.
Nick Martinez picked up the win after going seven innings and allowing five hits with two runs. He remains a perfect 4-0 on the year. CC Sabathia was hit with the loss after surrendering six runs on seven hits in just 2 1/3 innings of work.
Fielder finished 3-for-4 at the plate with three RBI, while Choo (four RBI) and Elvis Andrus (three RBI) each contributed heavily to the win.
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