Major League Baseball

Antlers rule!

Published Oct. 14, 2010 10:09 p.m. ET

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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - After all those years of being baseball's deprived franchise, the one with not a single postseason series win to its credit, here is how the Rangers joined the rest of the league Tuesday night: by sprinting.

After all, nothing runs like a deer.

The Rangers, who have adopted the hand gesture of antlers to celebrate speed plays, created three runs with their feet (er, hooves) Tuesday and ran right past the Tampa Bay Rays, 5-1, in Game 5 of the American League Division Series. It earned them an AL Championship Series date with the New York Yankees, against whom the Rangers ran wild in a September sweep.

Rays starter David Price turned his back - quite literally - on the Rangers in the first inning, and Elvis Andrus made him pay by scoring from second on a ground out.

In the fourth, Nelson Cruz broke a 1-1 tie by stealing third and scoring when the throw sailed into left. And in the sixth, Price turned his back again on a ground ball by Ian Kinsler, and Vladimir Guerrero lumbered home from second while the Rays reacted negatively to an umpire's call.

"To win the game the way we did and score the runs the way we did, it just says how far this team has come," club president Nolan Ryan said. "They will score any way they can and they will beat you any way they can."

All year, base running has been the most debated aspect of this Rangers team.

The Rangers led the majors in going from first to third on a single, but they were also among the major league leaders in "unforced errors" on the basepaths, which often short-circuited innings and, on occasion, cost them a game.

And all season, manager Ron Washington said he wouldn't stop his team from running. Learning the art, he kept saying, was a process and one that could be permanently stunted if the players were just told to stop.

It sure looked like Washington knew what he was talking about.

"We have a very aggressive team, and tonight we took advantage of some things," Washington said. "There are times when we've got to power our way through it and there are nights when we do it this way."

Tuesday was one of those nights. Against Price, offense had to be created rather than orchestrated. Though Kinsler's ninth-inning homer gave the club extra cushion, the Rangers could have won the game without the benefit of a run-scoring hit.

The first run scored on a grounder to first. The second on an error. And the third on a ground ball out.

The realm of possibilities was opened by Andrus in the first inning. He singled to start the game, then drew four pickoff attempts from Price before successfully stealing second during Josh Hamilton's at-bat.

Hamilton managed to run the count full against Price, and Andrus took off for third on the pitch. When Hamilton grounded to first and Carlos Pena flipped the ball to Price, Andrus and third base coach Dave Anderson took advantage of the fact that the pitcher's back was turned. Andrus never stopped and scored easily.

"We had a couple of times this year where we kind of snuck a run out that way," said C.J. Wilson, who was antlering in the bullpen as Andrus raced home. "It's a huge confidence booster to get a run that way and kind of demoralizing for the other team."

In the fourth, Cruz doubled off the wall in center with two outs. Had he not broken into a homer trot before the ball landed, he might have been at third, then not been able to steal the base and not drawn an errant throw from catcher Kelly Shoppach. The throw sailed into left. Cruz was able to trot home, though this time he sprinted.

And in the sixth, Guerrero, who among the Rangers has had his base running skills questioned most often this year, followed Andrus' lead. He broke from second on a one-out ground ball by Kinsler with a runner at first. For the Rays to complete the double play, Price had to cover first. Guerrero kept chugging, and his head-first slide beat the throw by a fingertip.

With Cliff Lee quickly distinguishing himself as the big-game pitcher of this generation on the mound, that was all the Rangers needed.

They sprinted to the win. And now, they sprint right into the AL Championship Series.

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