Josh Jung launched a three-run homer in the opening inning, while Adolis Garcia marked his 100th career home run with a solo shot in the eighth, leading the Texas Rangers to a 9-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays in St. Petersburg, Florida on Monday.

However, the win was bittersweet for Jung and the Rangers as Jung, after a stellar performance of going 3-for-4 with four RBIs, had to exit the game in the ninth inning due to a hand injury sustained from an 87-mph sinker. Rangers manager Bruce Bochy confirmed post-game that Jung had suffered a broken wrist, though he only indicated that the third baseman would be sidelined “for a little while.”

Corey Seager reached base three times, and Jared Walsh contributed with an RBI single for Texas, which played their first away game since their flawless 11-0 road record throughout the 2023 playoffs culminated in the franchise’s inaugural World Series title. Starting pitcher Dane Dunning (1-0) showcased a strong performance in his season debut, allowing only one hit over six innings before giving up two home runs in the seventh. The right-hander concluded with three earned runs, seven strikeouts, and four walks over 6 1/3 innings.

For Tampa Bay, Jose Siri and Richie Palacios each homered, but their efforts weren’t enough to halt their sixth consecutive loss to Texas, including last season’s two-game sweep in the wild-card round.

The defending champions wasted no time asserting dominance in their first road game of 2024. Marcus Semien and Seager drew walks to kick off the game, setting the stage for Jung to blast Ryan Pepiot’s changeup 387 feet over the wall in left-center field with two outs, giving Texas an early 3-0 lead. Pepiot, in his Rays debut, settled down after a challenging first inning, retiring 11 of the next 13 batters until Texas extended their lead in the sixth. Seager singled to open the inning, followed by Evan Carter’s walk.

Garcia’s flyout allowed Seager to advance to third before Jung’s single brought him home, extending the lead to 4-0. Palacios’ solo homer in the seventh inning put the Rays on the scoreboard, and Siri’s two-run blast narrowed the gap. Garcia smashed his third homer of the season in the eighth, and in the ninth, he endured a painful RBI when he was hit by an 89-mph fastball from Phil Maton with the bases loaded.