The Oakland Athletics (42-29) and the Texas Rangers (38-31) will open their series on Monday night at Rangers Ballpark In Arlington. The first pitch is set for 8:05 p.m. ET and will air live on Fox Southwest and MLB.com with a paid subscription.
Texas held a one-game lead over the A's after winning the first game of their 11-game homestand that began last Monday. However, the Rangers have lost seach game since while Oakland has moved three games up in the first place position.
The Rangers have been outscored by opponents 34-8 during their six-game skid. They are experiencing their worst losing streak since April 15-21, 2010. In their previous game, the Rangers were held scoreless until the ninth inning in a loss to the Blue Jays on Sunday.
"We're not the first team to lose six in a row and we probably won't be the last," manager Ron Washington said. "We're tough enough to make it through this challenge."
They will have their hands full as they face Dan Straily (4-2, 4.45 ERA). Straily is 3-0 with a 2.20 ERA in his last five appearances, while Oakland has won in each start. His streak started against the Rangers when he beat Yu Darvish in a 1-0 victory on May 21.
"He's on a roll," manager Bob Melvin told the team's official website. "We're giving him more and more rope to face tough at-bats in the game. He's pitching with a lot of confidence right now, and he's been terrific."
On the other side, Nick Tepesch (3-6, 4.30 ERA) has struggled recently. He allowed 11 runs in 12 innings during his previous two starts. On Wednesday, Tepesch gave up five runs in five innings of a 5-2 loss to the Indians.
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