A Helling Of A Win For The Rangers

Rick Helling pleaded his case well. Maybe he should stick to pitching.

Helling won the argument Monday night when he persuaded manager Johnny Oates to let him stay in the game with a seven-run lead after eight innings, despite the fact he had already reached his pitch limit.

But he didn't get his second complete game of the season as Oates took him out when two batters reached base. He ultimately was charged with two more runs as Eric Gunderson finished the Rangers' 9-4 victory over the Minnesota Twins'.

Helling (5-0) ended up throwing 138 pitches and going 8 2-3 innings while joining teammate Aaron Sele as the major leagues' only five-game winners. He tipped his cap to his rooting section while walking off the field.

"All I've wanted was a chance to show what I can do, and this is the first year I've really been given that chance," Helling said. "It's very unlikely I'll go 32-0, but it's nice to start out 5-0."

It was especially sweet for Helling, who started his first game in the Metrodome, just over a four-hour drive from his hometown of Fargo, N.D.

Helling left 55 tickets for family and friends, and his brother Rod bought an additional 250 tickets for friends in Fargo. Rod said he also knew of a bus full of fans from Fargo that bought tickets on their own.

"It was nice that they could come down to support me," Helling said. "That's the reason I tipped my cap to them when I came out. I've never really done that before, but I wanted to show that I appreciated the support."

Oates said he was unaware that the game was going to be as big as it was for Helling, who gave up eight hits and three walks, while tying a season high with 10 strikeouts.

"I didn't do very well in geography," Oates said. "I didn't know until I got here this afternoon that Fargo was that close to here. I thought it was somewhere out near Montana. I don't know."

Texas' offense was at it again with 13 hits, including home runs from Lee Stevens and Will Clark in a three-run fourth inning. Stevens' home run gave him eight in April, tying a Rangers record.

Juan Gonzalez drove in another run, giving him 33 in the month one shy of Tino Martinez's April record. Gonzalez's sacrifice fly in the seventh inning was his 10th RBI in three games.

Stevens, who hit a career-high 21 home runs last season with the Rangers, hit a 1-1 pitch from Mike Morgan (0-1) in the fourth inning that just cleared the fence in right-center field.

Morgan picked up his first decision in his fifth start. He lasted four innings, giving up six hits and five runs.

"Unfortunately, we've lost all five of my starts," Morgan said. "I gave the team a chance to win the other games, but today I didn't."

Notes: Marty Cordva was out of the Twins' lineup Monday despite a neck strain he aggravated Sunday in Seattle. He was listed as day-to-day. ... The Rangers have won the season series from the Twins in nine of the past 12 years. ... The Rangers, the AL leader in team batting average at .329, batted .332 against the Twins last season, their highest average against any AL team.

More from CBS News