ARLINGTON, Texas — Josh Hamilton put Texas ahead to stay with his American League-best 19th homer and Milton Bradley added a two-run single on which he got hurt in the Rangers’ 7-5 victory over the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday night.
Hamilton’s towering 412-foot solo shot into the second deck of right-field seats came in the first inning off Tim Hudson (7-5), who is winless in his last five starts.
Mark Teixeira, sent from Texas to Atlanta in a trade deadline deal last July, was 0-for-2 with a sacrifice fly and a walk in his first game against the team that drafted him fifth overall in 2001. Teixeira made his major-league debut with the Rangers in 2003.
Bradley, the AL batting leader at .330, had a two-run single in a four-run outburst in the third. He sustained a mild left quadriceps strain running the bases after hitting the ball into the right-center field gap. Bradley reached down before even getting to first base, then pulled up without making the turn.
After manager Ron Washington and a trainer went to check on him, Bradley ran a sprint down the right-field line. He then went to the dugout and was replaced by Brandon Boggs. The Rangers said Bradley would be evaluated again today.
It was only the fourth game since interleague play began in 1997 matching the leading hitters from each league. NL leader Chipper Jones was the DH for Atlanta, going 0-for-2 with two walks, dropping his average three points to .400.
Vicente Padilla (9-3) allowed only two hits over six innings with four strikeouts. C.J. Wilson worked the ninth for his 14th save in 16 chances.
