Rangers thrive with never-say-die attitude

HOUSTON — Maybe there’s no magic in what these Texas Rangers are doing. Maybe there’s no luck, either. Maybe what some call luck is simply a byproduct of preparation and smarts and tenacity.

“We really don’t give up until the last out,” Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus said after a 3-2 victory over the Astros on Tuesday night at Minute Maid Park.

He shrugs when he says this, as if he’s apologizing for a cliche athletes have been saying forever. Only thing is, it’s probably the story of this team. To focus on anything else is to miss the really cool parts of this season.

The Rangers have been brilliantly constructed and smartly managed. And some years, when a franchise has done things right, when it has gathered the right kinds of players and put the right kinds of people in charge, things like this happen.

They have the best record in the American League at 87-59 and haven’t had a lead of less than 8 1/2 games in the AL West in two weeks. They’re 33-10 in one-run games, a record that history says is not sustainable.

On the other hand, when it continues to happen, an entire clubhouse starts to see it as the norm.

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They’ve come from behind 44 times to win, tops in the Majors. They’re 15-3 against the Astros, the team widely favored to win the AL West. The Rangers are also playing their best baseball at the most important time of the year, winning 12 of 17 and sprinting into the postseason.

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“You continue to push yourself no matter what the score is so you give yourself an opportunity in these types of games,” Rangers manager Jeff Banister said. “These guys believe they can come back, and that’s probably the No. 1 asset you can have mentally.”

If you didn’t know a single thing about the Rangers in 2016, the game they played against the Astros on Tuesday might tell you all you need to know. They were one out from losing. But this is a place they’ve been before. …

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