Major League Baseball

EVAN GRANT'S KEYS TO GAME 5

Published Oct. 11, 2010 10:10 p.m. ET

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1 Throw strikes: In the two wins at Tampa Bay, Rangers' starters threw first-pitch strikes 73 percent of the time. The Rays responded with one run. Throwing strike one will take a lot of patience out of the patient Rays' lineup.

2 Find Hamilton: Josh Hamilton singled in his first at-bat of the series but is 1-for-13 since. He must find a way to break through. Playing an evening game should help. Hamilton hit .384 at night this season; .286 during the day.

3 Use Francoeur: Jeff Francoeur, who has not played since Game 1, should be back in the lineup against David Price. Francoeur is 9-for-23 (.391) against lefties since the Rangers acquired him.

4 Control running game: The Rangers have done a good job through the first four games, but with both aces on the mound, the creation of one run could turn the game.

5 Quiet the crowd: A couple of runs early could do wonders for tuning out the crowd at domed Tropicana Field. It was noisy at the start of the first two games and will likely be louder Tuesday.

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