ARLINGTON, Texas (Interstat) — Tanner Bibee tossed seven shutout innings and the Cleveland Guardians backed him with a pair of home runs Saturday night, blanking the Texas Rangers 6-0 at Globe Life Park.

Bibee, who entered the game with a 0-7 record and an elevated earned-run average, allowed only three hits while striking out three and walking two. He retired 10 of the final 11 batters he faced after a leadoff single in the fourth inning and kept the Rangers off balance with a fastball-changeup mix. The right-hander improved to 1-7 on the season as Cleveland snapped a two-game losing streak and improved to 37-29.

Jack Leiter started for Texas and took the loss, falling to 3-5. The right-hander worked 4 2/3 innings and surrendered five earned runs on six hits with two strikeouts and three walks. Texas slipped to 31-33 with its second consecutive defeat.

Cleveland opened the scoring in the fourth inning when Jose Ramirez led off with his 10th home run of the season, a towering fly ball to right-center field that cleared the wall. The solo shot gave the Guardians a 1-0 lead and snapped a string of 10 consecutive batters retired by Leiter to begin the game.

The Guardians broke the game open in the fifth inning with a four-run outburst. Brayan Rocchio led off with his fifth home run of the season, a line drive to right field that extended the lead to 2-0. After Travis Bazzana popped out, Ramirez drew a walk. Chase DeLauter followed with a sharp line-drive single to right field that scored Ramirez from first base, making it 3-0. Kyle Manzardo then doubled down the right-field line, scoring DeLauter to push the advantage to 4-0. Daniel Schneemann capped the rally with a single to center field that scored Manzardo, and the Guardians led 5-0.

Cleveland added a run in the eighth inning on a bases-loaded forceout. Steven Kwan singled to right field off reliever Luis Curvelo, and Patrick Bailey reached on a throwing error by Curvelo that allowed Kwan to move to second. After Rocchio grounded into a forceout that put runners at the corners, Bazzana grounded into another forceout that scored Kwan from third.

Texas managed only three hits in the game. Corey Seager singled in the first inning, Josh Jung singled in the fourth and Kyle Higashioka singled in the sixth. The Rangers grounded into two double plays, erasing potential threats. In the first inning, Jung grounded into a double play that wiped out Seager’s leadoff single. In the sixth inning, Seager lined into an unassisted double play that caught Higashioka off first base.

Bibee worked efficiently, needing only 86 pitches to complete seven innings. He faced the minimum in four of his seven frames and did not allow a runner to reach scoring position after the fourth inning. Relievers Cade Smith and Emmanuel Clase each worked a scoreless inning to close out the victory.

Leiter was lifted after 4 2/3 innings and 87 pitches. Cal Quantrill entered in relief and retired the only batter he faced in the fifth inning before working a scoreless sixth and seventh. Quantrill allowed one hit in 2 1/3 innings with two strikeouts. Luis Curvelo recorded just one out in the eighth while allowing two baserunners before being replaced by Grant Anderson, who finished the inning.

The Guardians finished with nine hits. Rocchio had two hits including the home run, while DeLauter had two hits and scored a run. Manzardo doubled and walked twice. Ramirez walked twice in addition to his home run. Kwan, Schneemann and Angel Martinez each contributed a single.

Texas’s offense struggled to generate consistent contact. Joc Pederson went 0-for-3 as the designated hitter, Jake Burger was 0-for-3 at first base and Brandon Nimmo went 0-for-2 with a walk. Wyatt Langford walked once and went 0-for-2. Ezequiel Duran was 0-for-3.

Cleveland took the lead in the fourth and never looked back. The Guardians had lost the series opener Friday night 3-2 in a game that ended on a walk-off hit, but they responded Saturday with complete control from the mound and timely hitting.

The game lasted 2 hours, 41 minutes in front of an announced crowd of 31,608.

Cleveland returns to Globe Life Park on Sunday for the series finale before returning home to host the New York Yankees on Monday.

Texas begins a seven-game road trip Tuesday in Kansas City.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Cleveland 6, Texas 5. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Texas with a 50.10 percent probability to win. Cleveland had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -1.5. The total score of six runs went over the over-under line of eight.