faith rewarded

After enduring a mostly dismal September, Mitch Moreland got his October off to a nice start on Saturday. The former Mississippi State standout from Amory drove in two runs, one with a home run, in Texas’ 8-6 victory over Tampa Bay in the American League Division Series, which is now squared at 1-1. Rangers manager Ron Washington had said he still had faith in Moreland despite his late-season slump, and Washington put his lefty-swinging first baseman in the lineup for the crucial Game 2 against Rays right-hander James Shields. Moreland got an RBI goundout in the pivotal five-run fourth inning against Shields and blasted his homer, his first in Arlington since June 21, off Brandon Gomes in the eighth. “This game is going to be full of ups and downs and you can’t dwell on the downs,” Moreland told espn.go.com. Moreland batted .348 with a homer and seven RBIs in the 2010 postseason, helping the Rangers reach their first World Series. Meanwhile, Rays outfielder and ex-Itawamba Community College star Desmond Jennings, who finished the regular season in an awful skid at the plate, is 2-for-7 in the ALDS with a hit in each game.
P.S. Lance Berkman’s home run off Roy Halladay on Saturday was his second against the Philadelphia ace in two weeks and the eighth postseason homer for Berkman in his career. Alas, St. Louis lost Game 1 of the NLDS 11-6. … Terry Francona’s departure as manager in Boston leaves former Jackson Mets Dave Magadan (the Red Sox’s hitting coach) and Tim Bogar (third-base coach) in an uncomfortable limbo until a new manager is hired. Of course, they could follow Francona to his next job, possibly with the Chicago White Sox.