Josh Jung is having an April to remember for the Texas Rangers, who will face the Athletics in the rubber match of a three-game series on Sunday afternoon in Arlington, Texas.

Jung continued his hot streak with a go-ahead, two-run homer in the sixth inning of Saturday’s 4-3 victory. The win moved Texas one game over .500 and into a tie for first place in the American League West with the Athletics.

After going 0-for-17 in March, Jung is batting .371 with four homers and 14 RBIs in 20 April games. He said after Saturday’s contest that he remains focused on improving his approach at the plate.

“I think I could (improve) every night,” Jung said. “There’s a couple of at-bats I wish I could have back. But that (homer) was in a big spot. Over this little stretch I’ve been on, I’ve been able to execute. Every day is a battle to get in there and execute. You get four or five at-bats, and how many can you win.”

Sunday’s pitching matchup will feature a pair of right-handers as the Rangers’ Kumar Rocker (1-1, 3.48 ERA) faces J.T. Ginn (0-0, 3.74).

Rocker retired 13 consecutive hitters at one point and allowed one run across six innings in a 5-1 home win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday.

“One of the best parts was, after the first inning, he put up five zeros,” Texas manager Skip Schumaker said. “To keep us in the game and then provide the innings after that, and just kind of shut the momentum down on their side, was a huge step for him.”

Rocker owns a 19-to-8 strikeout-to-walk ratio in four starts this season covering 20 2/3 innings.

Shea Langeliers is 3-for-6 against Rocker, who is 0-2 with an 8.18 ERA in three career starts vs. the Athletics.

Ginn allowed three runs over 5 1/3 innings in a no-decision against the Seattle Mariners on Monday. The A’s won 6-4.

“It was a solid outing for J.T.,” Athletics manager Mark Kotsay said. “Any time a young guy goes out and gives up some (early) contact, it’s easy for things to kind of unwind. But I was impressed by how he finished. His sinker had a lot of life.”

Jung has two homers in eight at-bats against Ginn, who is 1-1 with a 4.62 ERA in five career starts vs. Texas.

The Athletics are looking to bounce back after losing Saturday despite out-hitting the Rangers 7-5.

“We came out and took some great at-bats,” Kotsay said. “Sometimes you’ve got to tip your cap to the other starter, who gave them five good innings and kept us at three runs. Offensively, we just didn’t add onto the lead and give ourselves any margin for error.”

Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz tied a franchise record by drawing a walk in his 15th consecutive game.

Kotsay is monitoring the status of designated hitter Brent Rooker, who has not played since April 9 because of a right oblique strain and is nearing a return to the lineup. Kotsay said Rooker might not need a rehab assignment and could rejoin the team in the next few days.

–Field Level Media

The New York Yankees have yet to make a decision on the availability of designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton, who departed in the sixth inning of the series opener in Houston on Friday with lower-leg tightness.

Stanton did not play in the Yankees’ 8-3 win over the Astros on Saturday, a victory that secured the three-game series for New York, which has an eight-game winning streak.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone was noncommittal on what direction the club would take with Stanton, who has an extensive injury history. A stint on the injured list is possible, but the club is awaiting additional information.

“We’re going to give it the day, kind of see how treatment is going,” Boone said Saturday. “I do think he got it in time to hopefully not do something serious to it. Whether that turns into a day-to-day situation or turns into a short IL, we’ll see.

“We also don’t want to just race to the IL 12 hours after, when hopefully something isn’t too serious. We’ll be smart about it; G knows that. We don’t want this to turn into a long-term situation, so we’ll proceed accordingly.”

Right-hander Luis Gil (1-1, 4.11 ERA) is scheduled to start the series finale for the Yankees. He earned his first victory of the season in his start at the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday after tossing 6 1/3 scoreless innings with two hits, three walks and two strikeouts in a 4-0 win.

Gil is 1-0 with a 2.38 ERA in two career starts against the Astros.

Right-hander Spencer Arrighetti (2-0, 2.45 ERA) is the scheduled starter for the Astros on Sunday. He earned a 9-2 win over the Cleveland Guardians on Monday after surrendering two runs, five hits and four walks with three strikeouts across five innings. Arrighetti, who opened the season with Triple-A Sugar Land, has issued four walks in both of his starts this season.

Arrighetti has faced the Yankees once. He allowed five runs on eight hits, including three home runs and three walks with four strikeouts across five innings in a 9-4 road loss on May 8, 2024, to the Cardinals.

The Astros welcomed back one of their 10 pitchers on the injured list on Saturday, with left-hander Bennett Sousa (oblique) reinstated after missing the first 27 games of the season.

The Astros appear close to having ailing left-handed closer Josh Hader and right-hander Tatsuya Imai (arm fatigue) back after Hader threw 25 pitches in a live batting practice on Saturday. Hader (biceps) is scheduled for one additional session before a determination on his readiness is addressed. Imai, meanwhile, will throw a bullpen before departing for a rehab assignment.

Astros manager Joe Espada said he was happy to have Sousa back, but the player struggled in his season debut. He walked four batters, including three left-handed hitters, in the seventh inning.

“That lineup is going to force you to throw strikes,” Espada said. “They did it throughout the entire game.”

–Field Level Media

Arizona outfielder Alek Thomas took the field with the Mexican flag as a cape in honor of his mother’s heritage and followed that entrance with a two-run homer against San Diego in the first game of the Mexico City Series on Saturday.

It was not enough to keep the Padres from remaining undefeated in the Mexico City Series history.

The Padres beat the Diamondbacks 6-4 Saturday in the first game of the 2026 edition after sweeping San Francisco in the first Mexico City Series in 2023.

“We can probably call this place Petco South,” Padres manager Craig Stammen said in reference to the Padres’ Petco Park home. “I think that’s a good nickname for it.”

San Diego’s Michael King (3-1, 2.28 ERA) will oppose fellow right-hander Kyle Nelson (1-2, 6.97) in the final game of the two-game set at the Estadio Alfredo Harp Helu on Sunday afternoon.

“Great moment for Alek,” said Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo, noting that Thomas played for Team Mexico in the World Baseball Classic this spring.

“We’re going to come out tomorrow with everything we got to hopefully split this series,” Lovullo added Saturday. “There’s nothing we can do about today. There were some good moments and obviously moments that weren’t so good.”

The Padres overcame a 4-0 deficit behind two bases-empty homers by Ty France, and their four-run seventh inning was perhaps the D-backs’ worst half-inning of the season.

San Diego scored on two singles, three walks (one intentional), a balk, an error and two sacrifice flies. Gavin Sheets’ two-run single was the big blow. During the inning, shortstop Geraldo Perdomo left the game with a sprained left ankle after committing an error.

San Diego has won 13 of its past 15 games; the D-backs have lost four of five.

“The team never gives up, especially in a ballpark like this,” Stammen said. “Keep taking good at-bats and hopefully something gets through. We’re just piecing it together, playing good baseball and never giving up.

“So far this season we’ve been able to come back, and I think once you feel that and feel that early in the season, that becomes a little bit of your identity and who you are. So far, that’s been who we are.”

King has been strongest when the Padres have needed it the most this season. Opponents are hitting .179 against him with runners on base and .080 with runners in scoring position.

King came up as a relief pitcher with the New York Yankees and credits a mindset he developed there for his ability to rise to the occasion.

“I took a lot of pride in that, in terms of when you got yourself in some bad situations, you’ve got to get yourself out,” King told The San Diego Union-Tribune. “I kind of knew those situations and how to navigate it.”

King is coming off a 2-1 victory last Sunday against the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim, Calif., in a game in which he gave up only one hit in five scoreless innings but threw 105 pitches. He walked four batters.

Nelson enters after his worst career outing. He allowed eight runs and eight hits and retired only one of the 10 batters he faced in the first inning of a 10-4 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays last Sunday.

“I assume it is going to be kind of like pitching in Colorado,” Nelson said of the altitude in Mexico City, elevation 7,350 feet. “I’ll probably take the same approach. Just stick to my game plan, and if I need to make adjustments, make adjustments.”

King is 2-0 with an 0.00 ERA in three career starts against Arizona. Nelson is 4-3 with a 4.83 ERA in 11 games (10 starts) against San Diego. He has surrendered 11 home runs to the Padres in 54 innings.

–Field Level Media