On the offensive side, the Rangers have scored 65 runs, the sixth fewest in baseball. Their .246 average is the 10th highest, but their .303 on-base percentage ranks 20th in baseball (43 walks rank 4th fewest). So that likely means the Rangers get guys on; they don’t score, correct? Well, with runners in scoring position in the sixth, the Rangers are 14th in baseball with a .255 average. Their OPS is .700 (19th in MLB), which may cut into run deficiency. Maybe the Rangers haven’t’ had chances? Well, the Rangers have had 153 plate appearances with runners in scoring position (16th in MLB), so they’re not overly lacking opportunities. My guess is a couple of things. First, the Rangers hit into a decent amount of double plays in the sixth, coupled with being 10th in baseball in strikeouts in the sixth. They’re low on positive stats and high on negative statistical categories equaling to a lack of production in the bridge inning.
When I told Tony Beasley about the team’s pitching success in the sixth, he challenged me with this question. “Does that mean that one run put us down?” “Fewest runs allowed in the sixth per baseball, but that doesn’t mean how it affected our game?” So I did more digging. I looked at every Rangers game where the team or the opposition scored a run in the sixth inning. In total, there are 68 games in 2022 where a run scored in the sixth, the Rangers, the opposition, or both. Here’s how I broke it down; remember, these are only games in which a sixth-inning run scored that day and what happened once that sixth inning run scored:
| 6th Inning Scenario | No. of Occurrences | Record | No. of Occurrences w/ Tony Beasley | Record or Game it happened |
| The Game-Winning run was scored | 11 times | Rangers are 5-6 | 4 times | Rangers are 2-2 |
| Opposition took the lead | 4 times | Rangers are 2-2 | 1 time | 9/7 Extra inning loss at HOU |
| Rangers took the lead | 3 times | Rangers are 2-1 | 1 time | 8/20 Extra inning win at MIN |
| Opposition tied the game | 4 times | Rangers are 2-2 | None | |
| Rangers tied the game | 3 times | Rangers are 2-1 | 1 time | 9/22 win vs. LAA |
| Opposition Extended Their Lead | 10 times | Rangers are 0-10 | 4 times | Rangers lost all 4 games |
| Rangers reduced the lead | 13 times | Rangers are 1-12 (Win = 6/11 at CHW) | 4 times | Rangers lost all 4 games |
| Opposition cut the Rangers’ lead | 6 times | Rangers are 4-2 | 4 times | Rangers are 2-2 |
| Rangers extended their lead | 9 times | Rangers are 8-1 | 1 time | 8/18 vs. OAK |
| Both teams scored and the outcome didn’t change | 4 times | Rangers are 2-2 | 1 time | 9/18 at TB |
***On 6/24, both the Rangers and Nationals entered the sixth tied and traded runs entering the seventh tied.
With the situations pieced out, what does this mean? First, it means 11 of the Rangers’ 152 games; the sixth inning decided the game. It also means that whether the opposition or the Rangers extended their lead in the sixth, they held on, leaving the other team a chance to return. A few times, whoever scored could complete a rally, but it didn’t happen often.
It also sparked a thought of how the sixth compares to the other innings. So here’s a breakdown of the Rangers’ run differential per inning in 2022:
| Inning | Runs Scored | Runs Allowed | Run Differential |
| 1st | 74 | 91 | -17 |
| 2nd | 77 | 72 | +5 |
| 3rd | 68 | 81 | -13 |
| 4th | 74 | 89 | -15 |
| 5th | 90 | 89 | +1 |
| 6th | 65 | 60 | +5 |
| 7th | 62 | 64 | -2 |
| 8th | 73 | 81 | -8 |
| 9th | 68 | 49 | +19 |
| Extras | 23 | 27 | -4 |
However you slice it, I don’t think the sixth has been a burden or a saint for the Rangers in 2022. It has been one of the better innings this season for Texas, but it hasn’t stood out compared to the ninth. Beasley’s reasoning for the sixth inning provides good insight, especially for clubs that use three-headed monsters in the back of their bullpen. “[The sixth is] the bridge inning. That’s the inning that gets you to the backside of the game to where you feel like you’ll have a better chance of closing the game out.” So keep on the lookout for the sixth inning in these final ten games and next year.
