ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) - Prince Fielder homered and had three hits, Shin-Soo Choo hit a leadoff home run for the second straight game and the Texas Rangers beat the Kansas City Royals 5-2 Wednesday night.
Choo pulled a 98 mph fastball from Yordano Ventura into the right-field seats, and Fielder gave the Rangers a 4-0 lead with a two-run homer in the second inning.
Texas rookie Delino DeShields had three hits, including his first triple, and scored twice.
Yovani Gallardo (3-5) took a shutout into the seventh inning before allowing run-scoring doubles by Kendrys Morales and Salvador Perez. Gallardo snapped a four-start losing streak that matched a career worst.
The first five Texas hitters reached against Ventura (2-3), who gave up at least four runs for the fourth time in five starts.
The hard-throwing right-hander's ERA rose to 5.58 a season after he was among the best rookie pitchers in baseball. Trailing 2-0 with the bases loaded and no outs in the first, Ventura got out of the inning with two of his six strikeouts and a lineout by Thomas Field.
Ventura was the verge of escaping trouble again in the second after Elvis Andrus grounded into a double play while DeShields stayed at third. But Fielder sent his fourth homer into the seats to the right of the berm in center field.
Texas closer Neftali Feliz pitched a perfect ninth for his sixth save in eight chances.
Choo's grounder scored DeShields for a 5-0 lead in the fourth. The Rangers had scored just nine runs with Gallardo in the game in his first seven starts.
The right-hander who grew up in nearby Fort Worth allowed just three singles through the first six innings. He gave up six hits in seven innings with two strikeouts and a walk.
Texas' Mitch Moreland had two singles and walk in his return from the disabled list after surgery to remove bone chips in his left elbow. He was 0 for 11 with six walks in a four-game rehabilitation assignment at Triple-A Round Rock.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Rangers: CF Leonys Martin was out of the lineup again with a sore left hand. It's the sixth time he hasn't started since spraining his left wrist May 3 against Oakland. He was jammed on a swing Monday, and manager Jeff Banister said the soreness is related to the first injury. Martin appeared as a pinch runner Tuesday. ... LHP Matt Harrison (spinal fusion surgery) threw 29 pitches in an extended spring training game in Arizona. He allowed three hits and two runs in two innings with a walk and two strikeouts.
UP NEXT
Royals: RHP Jeremy Guthrie (2-2) faces the Rangers in a finale of the four-game series. He has five straight quality starts and a 2.41 ERA over his last six outings against Texas since the start of 2012.
Rangers: LHP Ross Detwiler (0-4) faces the Royals for the first time.
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