Beltre v Beltran

The best way to tag Tuesday night's Yankees/Rangers game was Beltre versus Beltran. Two of baseball's best veteran hitters, both on probable Hall of Fame tracks -- but for this one game, with very different results. Rangers 3rd baseman Adrian Beltre homered in the top of the 1st inning. Carlos Beltran (#36) runs out of room and watches it land in the right field seats of Yankee Stadium, as Texas takes a lead they'd never relinquish.
In the bottom of the 1st, it was Beltran's turn to send a message. He tried -- with a booming hit to left field. It appeared to be a double, except that Carlos stopped at 1st base, and then began squatting -- instantly tipping us that something was wrong.
Moments later, accompanied by trainer Steve Donahue, he left the game with what were later reported to be leg cramps. So the Beltre versus Beltran competition was over for this night.
The Rangers tacked on five runs in the 8th and cruised to a 7-1 victory behind Cole Hamels. But the big early hit that set the tone for the game belonged to Adrian Beltre. He finished the night with three hits and three RBIs, a performance that landed him on the "star of the game" segment with Emily Jones following the game.

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