The Tampa Bay Rays wasted another solid performance by Jeremy Hellickson with their quiet bats.

Hellickson allowed two runs in six innings against the AL West-leading Texas Rangers in a 2-0 loss Tuesday night, the 10th time this season the Rays scored one run or less while the rookie right-hander was on the mound.

“He pitched great. We’ve just got to figure out how to beat some of these pitchers we’re facing. Too many 1-0, 2-0 losses. We’ve got to get beyond that. There are no excuses,” manager Joe Maddon said. “He had to pitch through some land mines to keep it at two runs. We did some really good things. He didn’t cave in by any means.”

Tampa Bay managed three singles and hit only a few balls out of the infield against Scott Feldman (1-0) and four Rangers relievers.

Hellickson (11-10) was cruising along until his first pitch of the sixth, which Josh Hamilton hit deep into a second deck of seats in right field. It landed an estimated 449 feet from home plate, his 19th homer, and broke a scoreless tie.

“It was right down the middle, right where he likes it,” Hellickson said.

“That was monster, and we needed it,” Texas manager Ron Washington said. “That young kid can pitch. I thought we were taking some good swings at him. He was all around the strike zone, and finally left one up to Hamilton. Then Mike got him, then Murphy got him and then it started.”

Michael Young followed with a double before consecutive singles by Mike Napoli and David Murphy, the second sending Young home.

“I didn’t feel tired. I just missed with some pitches and they took advantage of it,” Hellickson said. “They’re a very good lineup. I thought I pitched well enough, pitched out of a few bases-loaded jams. It could have gotten out of hand. That one inning, I missed my spot a few times. … A few pitches got away from me.”

Hellickson is 1-3 in his five August starts despite a 2.49 ERA in that span. He struck out four and walked four, two of those intentional, while giving up two runs and six hits.

The Rangers still had the bases loaded after scoring twice in the sixth before Ian Kinsler, the last batter Hellickson faced, hit an inning-ending flyball on the 10th pitch of the at-bat.

Texas also had the bases loaded in the fourth, when Hamilton had a leadoff double. Young and Napoli both struck out before Murphy was intentionally walked and Yorvit Torrealba drew a walk. But Hellickson got Mitch Moreland on a flyball.

Feldman threw six scoreless innings while allowing only two singles in a spot start when the Rangers decided to skip 10-game winner Matt Harrison to give him an extended break. Feldman limited the Rays to two singles.

“He’s a sinker kind of guy. That’s what he does. There’s not much you can do about it,” B.J. Upton said. “We didn’t elevate the ball much which is what you’re gonna do against him.”

The only balls Tampa Bay hit out of the infield against Feldman (1-0) were the two singles he allowed. There were 12 groundouts, four strikeouts and two runners caught stealing in the 18 outs recorded while he was on the mound.

Feldman struck out four with one walk while throwing 88 pitches, right in the range of what Washington had said before the game.

“He had given us everything he needed to give us,” Washington said. “He kept it down in the zone and did an outstanding job.”

Mark Lowe, Darren Oliver and Mike Adams combined for two no-hit innings to set up Neftali Feliz for his 26th save in 32 chances. It was the Rangers’ 16th shutout this season.

The Rays, held scoreless for the 13th time this season, had two runners on with no outs and got two balls out of the infield in the ninth. But Feliz finally got out of the jam when Evan Longoria grounded into a game-ending double play.

The Rays had hit 10 homers in their previous series against Toronto, a team-record for a series. But their bats went mostly silent in their first game at Texas since last season’s AL playoffs.

Notes: The 13 shutouts for Tampa Bay are the most since 2004, when they also had 13. A dozen of those have come since June 1, a span of 80 games. … Murphy has started four consecutive games, going 7 for 15 in that stretch. … The Rangers are 43-27 at home. … Along with Hamilton’s long homer, the reigning AL MVP also had two big swings when the bat slipped out of his hands. One of them landed about 10 rows behind the Rangers dugout, in some empty seats, and the other wound up coming to rest in foul territory past first base near coach Gary Pettis.

The Tampa Bay Rays wasted another solid performance by Jeremy Hellickson with their quiet bats.

Hellickson allowed two runs in six innings against the AL West-leading Texas Rangers in a 2-0 loss Tuesday night, the 10th time this season the Rays scored one run or less while the rookie right-hander was on the mound.

“He pitched great. We’ve just got to figure out how to beat some of these pitchers we’re facing. Too many 1-0, 2-0 losses. We’ve got to get beyond that. There are no excuses,” manager Joe Maddon said. “He had to pitch through some land mines to keep it at two runs. We did some really good things. He didn’t cave in by any means.”

Tampa Bay managed three singles and hit only a few balls out of the infield against Scott Feldman (1-0) and four Rangers relievers.

Hellickson (11-10) was cruising along until his first pitch of the sixth, which Josh Hamilton hit deep into a second deck of seats in right field. It landed an estimated 449 feet from home plate, his 19th homer, and broke a scoreless tie.

“It was right down the middle, right where he likes it,” Hellickson said.

“That was monster, and we needed it,” Texas manager Ron Washington said. “That young kid can pitch. I thought we were taking some good swings at him. He was all around the strike zone, and finally left one up to Hamilton. Then Mike got him, then Murphy got him and then it started.”

Michael Young followed with a double before consecutive singles by Mike Napoli and David Murphy, the second sending Young home.

“I didn’t feel tired. I just missed with some pitches and they took advantage of it,” Hellickson said. “They’re a very good lineup. I thought I pitched well enough, pitched out of a few bases-loaded jams. It could have gotten out of hand. That one inning, I missed my spot a few times. … A few pitches got away from me.”

Hellickson is 1-3 in his five August starts despite a 2.49 ERA in that span. He struck out four and walked four, two of those intentional, while giving up two runs and six hits.

The Rangers still had the bases loaded after scoring twice in the sixth before Ian Kinsler, the last batter Hellickson faced, hit an inning-ending flyball on the 10th pitch of the at-bat.

Texas also had the bases loaded in the fourth, when Hamilton had a leadoff double. Young and Napoli both struck out before Murphy was intentionally walked and Yorvit Torrealba drew a walk. But Hellickson got Mitch Moreland on a flyball.

Feldman threw six scoreless innings while allowing only two singles in a spot start when the Rangers decided to skip 10-game winner Matt Harrison to give him an extended break. Feldman limited the Rays to two singles.

“He’s a sinker kind of guy. That’s what he does. There’s not much you can do about it,” B.J. Upton said. “We didn’t elevate the ball much which is what you’re gonna do against him.”

The only balls Tampa Bay hit out of the infield against Feldman (1-0) were the two singles he allowed. There were 12 groundouts, four strikeouts and two runners caught stealing in the 18 outs recorded while he was on the mound.

Feldman struck out four with one walk while throwing 88 pitches, right in the range of what Washington had said before the game.

“He had given us everything he needed to give us,” Washington said. “He kept it down in the zone and did an outstanding job.”

Mark Lowe, Darren Oliver and Mike Adams combined for two no-hit innings to set up Neftali Feliz for his 26th save in 32 chances. It was the Rangers’ 16th shutout this season.

The Rays, held scoreless for the 13th time this season, had two runners on with no outs and got two balls out of the infield in the ninth. But Feliz finally got out of the jam when Evan Longoria grounded into a game-ending double play.

The Rays had hit 10 homers in their previous series against Toronto, a team-record for a series. But their bats went mostly silent in their first game at Texas since last season’s AL playoffs.

Notes: The 13 shutouts for Tampa Bay are the most since 2004, when they also had 13. A dozen of those have come since June 1, a span of 80 games. … Murphy has started four consecutive games, going 7 for 15 in that stretch. … The Rangers are 43-27 at home. … Along with Hamilton’s long homer, the reigning AL MVP also had two big swings when the bat slipped out of his hands. One of them landed about 10 rows behind the Rangers dugout, in some empty seats, and the other wound up coming to rest in foul territory past first base near coach Gary Pettis.

“He pitched great. We’ve just got to figure out how to beat some of these pitchers we’re facing. Too many 1-0, 2-0 losses. We’ve got to get beyond that. There are no excuses,” manager Joe Maddon said. “He had to pitch through some land mines to keep it at two runs. We did some really good things. He didn’t cave in by any means.”

Tampa Bay managed three singles and hit only a few balls out of the infield against Scott Feldman (1-0) and four Rangers relievers.

Hellickson (11-10) was cruising along until his first pitch of the sixth, which Josh Hamilton hit deep into a second deck of seats in right field. It landed an estimated 449 feet from home plate, his 19th homer, and broke a scoreless tie.

“It was right down the middle, right where he likes it,” Hellickson said.

“That was monster, and we needed it,” Texas manager Ron Washington said. “That young kid can pitch. I thought we were taking some good swings at him. He was all around the strike zone, and finally left one up to Hamilton. Then Mike got him, then Murphy got him and then it started.”

Michael Young followed with a double before consecutive singles by Mike Napoli and David Murphy, the second sending Young home.

“I didn’t feel tired. I just missed with some pitches and they took advantage of it,” Hellickson said. “They’re a very good lineup. I thought I pitched well enough, pitched out of a few bases-loaded jams. It could have gotten out of hand. That one inning, I missed my spot a few times. … A few pitches got away from me.”

Hellickson is 1-3 in his five August starts despite a 2.49 ERA in that span. He struck out four and walked four, two of those intentional, while giving up two runs and six hits.

The Rangers still had the bases loaded after scoring twice in the sixth before Ian Kinsler, the last batter Hellickson faced, hit an inning-ending flyball on the 10th pitch of the at-bat.

Texas also had the bases loaded in the fourth, when Hamilton had a leadoff double. Young and Napoli both struck out before Murphy was intentionally walked and Yorvit Torrealba drew a walk. But Hellickson got Mitch Moreland on a flyball.

Feldman threw six scoreless innings while allowing only two singles in a spot start when the Rangers decided to skip 10-game winner Matt Harrison to give him an extended break. Feldman limited the Rays to two singles.

“He’s a sinker kind of guy. That’s what he does. There’s not much you can do about it,” B.J. Upton said. “We didn’t elevate the ball much which is what you’re gonna do against him.”

The only balls Tampa Bay hit out of the infield against Feldman (1-0) were the two singles he allowed. There were 12 groundouts, four strikeouts and two runners caught stealing in the 18 outs recorded while he was on the mound.

Feldman struck out four with one walk while throwing 88 pitches, right in the range of what Washington had said before the game.

“He had given us everything he needed to give us,” Washington said. “He kept it down in the zone and did an outstanding job.”

Mark Lowe, Darren Oliver and Mike Adams combined for two no-hit innings to set up Neftali Feliz for his 26th save in 32 chances. It was the Rangers’ 16th shutout this season.

The Rays, held scoreless for the 13th time this season, had two runners on with no outs and got two balls out of the infield in the ninth. But Feliz finally got out of the jam when Evan Longoria grounded into a game-ending double play.

The Rays had hit 10 homers in their previous series against Toronto, a team-record for a series. But their bats went mostly silent in their first game at Texas since last season’s AL playoffs.

Notes: The 13 shutouts for Tampa Bay are the most since 2004, when they also had 13. A dozen of those have come since June 1, a span of 80 games. … Murphy has started four consecutive games, going 7 for 15 in that stretch. … The Rangers are 43-27 at home. … Along with Hamilton’s long homer, the reigning AL MVP also had two big swings when the bat slipped out of his hands. One of them landed about 10 rows behind the Rangers dugout, in some empty seats, and the other wound up coming to rest in foul territory past first base near coach Gary Pettis.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

“He pitched great. We’ve just got to figure out how to beat some of these pitchers we’re facing. Too many 1-0, 2-0 losses. We’ve got to get beyond that. There are no excuses,” manager Joe Maddon said. “He had to pitch through some land mines to keep it at two runs. We did some really good things. He didn’t cave in by any means.”

Tampa Bay managed three singles and hit only a few balls out of the infield against Scott Feldman (1-0) and four Rangers relievers.

Hellickson (11-10) was cruising along until his first pitch of the sixth, which Josh Hamilton hit deep into a second deck of seats in right field. It landed an estimated 449 feet from home plate, his 19th homer, and broke a scoreless tie.

“It was right down the middle, right where he likes it,” Hellickson said.

“That was monster, and we needed it,” Texas manager Ron Washington said. “That young kid can pitch. I thought we were taking some good swings at him. He was all around the strike zone, and finally left one up to Hamilton. Then Mike got him, then Murphy got him and then it started.”

Michael Young followed with a double before consecutive singles by Mike Napoli and David Murphy, the second sending Young home.

“I didn’t feel tired. I just missed with some pitches and they took advantage of it,” Hellickson said. “They’re a very good lineup. I thought I pitched well enough, pitched out of a few bases-loaded jams. It could have gotten out of hand. That one inning, I missed my spot a few times. … A few pitches got away from me.”

Hellickson is 1-3 in his five August starts despite a 2.49 ERA in that span. He struck out four and walked four, two of those intentional, while giving up two runs and six hits.

The Rangers still had the bases loaded after scoring twice in the sixth before Ian Kinsler, the last batter Hellickson faced, hit an inning-ending flyball on the 10th pitch of the at-bat.

Texas also had the bases loaded in the fourth, when Hamilton had a leadoff double. Young and Napoli both struck out before Murphy was intentionally walked and Yorvit Torrealba drew a walk. But Hellickson got Mitch Moreland on a flyball.

Feldman threw six scoreless innings while allowing only two singles in a spot start when the Rangers decided to skip 10-game winner Matt Harrison to give him an extended break. Feldman limited the Rays to two singles.

“He’s a sinker kind of guy. That’s what he does. There’s not much you can do about it,” B.J. Upton said. “We didn’t elevate the ball much which is what you’re gonna do against him.”

The only balls Tampa Bay hit out of the infield against Feldman (1-0) were the two singles he allowed. There were 12 groundouts, four strikeouts and two runners caught stealing in the 18 outs recorded while he was on the mound.

Feldman struck out four with one walk while throwing 88 pitches, right in the range of what Washington had said before the game.

“He had given us everything he needed to give us,” Washington said. “He kept it down in the zone and did an outstanding job.”

Mark Lowe, Darren Oliver and Mike Adams combined for two no-hit innings to set up Neftali Feliz for his 26th save in 32 chances. It was the Rangers’ 16th shutout this season.

The Rays, held scoreless for the 13th time this season, had two runners on with no outs and got two balls out of the infield in the ninth. But Feliz finally got out of the jam when Evan Longoria grounded into a game-ending double play.

The Rays had hit 10 homers in their previous series against Toronto, a team-record for a series. But their bats went mostly silent in their first game at Texas since last season’s AL playoffs.

Notes: The 13 shutouts for Tampa Bay are the most since 2004, when they also had 13. A dozen of those have come since June 1, a span of 80 games. … Murphy has started four consecutive games, going 7 for 15 in that stretch. … The Rangers are 43-27 at home. … Along with Hamilton’s long homer, the reigning AL MVP also had two big swings when the bat slipped out of his hands. One of them landed about 10 rows behind the Rangers dugout, in some empty seats, and the other wound up coming to rest in foul territory past first base near coach Gary Pettis.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

ARLINGTON (AP) - Texas Rangers manager Ron Washington stood up from his office chair and started wildly shaking his knees back and forth.

While exaggerating how nervous he might be about the AL West race with the Los Angeles Angels, the division-leading manager and his team know things will be much tighter down the stretch this season.

They already are.

“Think about it. If you’ve got a seven-game lead, of course you’re more comfortable,” Washington said after settling back into his chair. “But that doesn’t mean that panic sets in.”

Texas (76-59) took a three-game lead into its off day Monday, after playing 17 consecutive days with only one other break since Aug. 1. There are 27 regular-season games left, the last three at Los Angeles in four weeks.

“They’re not going away. They’re a good team. Everybody knows that,” second baseman Ian Kinsler said. “We didn’t expect them to do that last year, it was just kind of luck of the draw.”

At the same point last season before the Rangers won their first AL pennant, they had an eight-game division lead. That never got smaller than seven and they clinched the division title with eight games left.

The Rangers found out Monday they will be without slugging right fielder Nelson Cruz for about three weeks because of another hamstring injury. An MRI revealed a grade 1 strain for Cruz, who got hurt running out a double in Sunday night’s 9-5 victory over Los Angeles.

Cruz missed 51 games last season because of three different stints on the disabled list with issues with both hamstrings. He was on the DL for 17 games earlier this year because of a right quadriceps strain.

Texas went through most of the final month of the regular season last year without AL MVP Josh Hamilton and Michael Young, though both got back for the playoffs.

Before rallying Sunday night against Angels ace Jered Weaver, Texas had lost seven of 10 games. The division gap would have been trimmed to a single game without that comeback.

Their losing stretch began with a 2-1 loss at Los Angeles on Aug. 18, when Texas was three outs away from a four-game sweep and a season-high division lead of eight games. But Mark Trumbo hit a game-ending two-run homer.

“We had a hiccup, had some bumps in our starting rotation, had some things out the bullpen that didn’t work. We had some days where we didn’t put the runs on the board,” Washington said. “It happens. Every team in the game is going through it. We just hit it right now.”

At the same time, the Angeles had a season-best six-game winning streak. They won seven of eight before their last scheduled game at Rangers Ballpark this season.

The Rangers have been alone atop the AL West since July 6, when they were early in a 12-game winning streak.

Boston took three of four at Texas in a potential playoff preview last week. The Red Sox lost the opener 4-0, but then won 11-5, 13-2 and 6-0. The Rangers rebounded to win two of three against Los Angeles.

The Rangers go to Fenway Park this weekend after wrapping up their 10-game homestand with three against Tampa Bay. Texas plays 15 of its last 27 games on the road.

“We’ve been grinding, battling lately,” Young said. “We’ll gladly take this off day and get ready for the last stretch. We like where we’re at. We’ve been down this road before so we know what it takes to win.”

Young, the longest-tenured Ranger in his 11th season, asked to be traded last winter when the team acquired All-Star third baseman Adrian Beltre and said the plan was to use Young primarily as a designated hitter. Young stayed and has responded with one of his best seasons.

As of Monday, Young was second in the majors with a .336 batting average and 11th with his team-best 87 RBIs.

With Beltre missing the last 35 games because of a left hamstring injury, Young has been mostly at third base.

Beltre was scheduled to begin a rehab assignment for Triple-A Round Rock on Monday, and could be back before the Rangers go to Boston this weekend.

Hamilton and Elvis Andrus snapped out of extended slumps with three hits each Sunday night. A pitch after Andrus had an RBI triple, Hamilton hit a tying two-run homer. Hamilton later drove home the go-ahead run with a single in the seventh.

“Our team, we like our position for sure,” Andrus said. “We have way more experience. Everybody, including myself and our pitching, is much different. We see a lot of good things, a lot of positive things. We just have to continue to play hard.”

After that much-needed break before the stretch.

(© Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

By Stephen Hawkins

ASSOCIATED PRESS

ARLINGTON — Texas Rangers manager Ron Washington stood up from his office chair and started wildly shaking his knees back and forth.

While exaggerating how nervous he might be about the AL West race with the Los Angeles Angels, the division-leading manager and his team know things will be much tighter down the stretch this season.

They already are.

“If you’ve got a seven-game lead, of course you’re more comfortable,” Washington said after settling back into his chair. “But that doesn’t mean that panic sets in.”

Texas (76-59) took a three-game lead into its off day Monday, after playing 17 consecutive days with only one other break since Aug. 1. There are 27 regular-season games left, the last three at Los Angeles in four weeks.

“They’re not going away. They’re a good team. Everybody knows that,” Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler said.

At the same point last season before the Rangers won their first AL pennant, they had an eight-game division lead. That never got smaller than seven and they clinched the division title with eight games left.

The Rangers found out Monday they will be without slugging right fielder Nelson Cruz for about three weeks because of another hamstring injury. An MRI revealed a grade 1 strain for Cruz, who got hurt running out a double in Sunday night’s 9-5 victory over Los Angeles. The Rangers were expected to add another outfielder before today’s game against Tampa Bay — possibly Cuban outfielder Leonys Martin from Triple-A Round Rock.

In 113 games this season, Cruz is hitting .270 with a team-leading 28 home runs and 84 RBIs.

Before rallying Sunday night against Angels ace Jered Weaver, Texas had lost seven of 10 games. The division gap would have been trimmed to a single game without that comeback. Their losing stretch began with a 2-1 loss at Los Angeles on Aug. 18, when Texas was three outs away from a four-game sweep and a season-high division lead of eight games. But Mark Trumbo hit a game-ending two-run homer.

“We had a hiccup, had some bumps in our starting rotation, had some things out the bullpen that didn’t work. We had some days where we didn’t put the runs on the board,” Washington said. “It happens. Every team in the game is going through it. We just hit it right now.”

At the same time, the Angels had a season-best six-game winning streak. They won seven of eight before their last scheduled game at Rangers Ballpark this season.

The Rangers go to Fenway Park this weekend after wrapping up their 10-game homestand with three against Tampa Bay. Texas plays 15 of its last 27 games on the road.

“We’ve been grinding, battling lately,” Michael Young said. “We’ll gladly take this off day and get ready for the last stretch. We like where we’re at. We’ve been down this road before so we know what it takes to win.”

All-Star third baseman Adrian Beltre was scheduled to begin a rehab assignment with Round Rock on Monday, and could be back before the Rangers go to Boston this weekend.