Jacob deGrom struck out 10 batters over seven scoreless innings, and Evan Carter belted a two-run homer, fueling the Texas Rangers to a 3-0 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Sunday in Arlington, Texas.
deGrom (3-2) scattered three hits — two to Nico Hoerner — and did not walk a batter to record his 99th career win.
It marked the second double-digit strikeout game of the season for the two-time Cy Young Award winner; he also struck out 10 batters in the Rangers’ 6-1 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on April 23.
He rebounded on Sunday after yielding six runs on seven hits — including two homers — in a 7-4 setback to the New York Yankees last Tuesday.
Texas’ Josh Jung collected three of his team’s seven hits and scored two runs, one day after he had three hits in a 6-0 victory over the Cubs.
Jacob Latz relieved deGrom and retired the side in order in both the eighth and ninth innings to secure his fourth save of the season.
Chicago’s Ian Happ went 0-for-3 with three strikeouts to see his career-best 30-game on-base streak come to a halt.
Jameson Taillon (2-2) permitted one run on four hits in 5 1/3 innings for the Cubs, who were shut out in consecutive contests following their second 10-game winning streak of the season.
The Rangers scratched for a run in the fourth inning, as Jung was deemed to have beaten the tag of catcher Carson Kelly following the throw home by Chicago first baseman Michael Busch. The play was upheld after the Cubs challenged the call.
Jung led off the inning with a single and advanced to third on Joc Pederson’s double before coming home on a fielder’s choice by Alejandro Osuna.
Texas provided insurance in the eighth inning.
Jung had a two-out single for his third hit of the day, and Carter deposited a 3-2 slider from Daniel Palencia for a two-run homer. Carter’s homer was his fifth of the season.
