Langford hits 3-run homer, Burger and Pederson also connect as Rangers beat Blue Jays 6-5

TORONTO (AP) — Wyatt Langford hit a three–run home run, Jake Burger and Joc Pederson also went deep, and the Texas Rangers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 6-5 on Thursday night.

Pederson went 2 for 3 with two walks and scored twice as Texas bounced back after losing the previous two.

Toronto's Kazuma Okamoto cut the deficit to one with a two-run homer off Jacob Latz in the ninth, his 18th.

Latz recovered by retiring Alejandro Kirk on a grounder and striking out pinch hitter Brandon Valenzuela for his 15th save in 17 chances.

Rangers shortstop Corey Seager went 0 for 3 and walked twice after being activated off the concussion list. The two-time World Series MVP missed 12 games.

Texas left-hander MacKenzie Gore (5-6) allowed three runs and four hits in seven innings, snapping a four-start winless streak.

Pederson led off with his 12th homer, capping an 11-pitch at bat with a 402-foot drive into the second deck. He fouled off seven pitches before homering.

Langford and Burger both connected in a five-run third. Langford, who also went deep in Wednesday’s loss at Miami, hit his eighth homer. Seven have come in 19 games since he returned from the injured list June 5.

Burger’s two-run shot was his 14th.

All three homers came off Kevin Gausman (4-6), who allowed six runs and 10 hits in six innings, his sixth straight winless outing.

Gausman was hit hard by the Cubs in his previous start on June 19 when he gave up seven runs on seven hits in two innings.

Toronto scored three in the fifth. Davis Schneider hit a bases-loaded sacrifice fly and Myles Straw followed with a two-run double.

The Blue Jays are 10-17 in series openers.

Rangers RHP Nathan Eovaldi (7-7, 4.24 ERA) is scheduled to start Friday against Blue Jays LHP Patrick Corbin (2-3, 4.73).

Corrects fifth graf show that Seager was 0 for 3, not 0 for 2.

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Texas Rangers pitcher MacKenzie Gore (1) works against the Toronto Blue Jays during the second inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Thursday, June 25, 2026. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Kevin Gausman reacts after giving up a solo home run to Texas Rangers designated hitter Joc Pederson during the first inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Thursday, June 25, 2026. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)

Texas Rangers' Wyatt Langford (36) rounds the bases after hitting a three-run home run against the Toronto Blue Jays during the third inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Thursday, June 25, 2026. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)

Texas Rangers' Wyatt Langford (36) celebrates his three-run home run against the Toronto Blue Jays with Joc Pederson (3) during the third of a baseball game in Toronto, Thursday, June 25, 2026. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)

Texas Rangers designated hitter Joc Pederson (3) hits a solo home run against the Toronto Blue Jays during the first inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Thursday, June 25, 2026. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Daizen Maeda gave Japan the lead and Anthony Elanga took it away six minutes later, helping Sweden to a 1-1 draw Thursday night that sent both teams to the knockout round of the World Cup.

Elanga’s impressive left-footed strike from just outside the right corner of the box in the 62nd minute was his second goal of this year’s tournament. Elanga has scored only three goals in 49 games for Newcastle, but zero in 32 Premier League matches.

Six minutes earlier, Maeda settled a nifty pass from Ritsu Doan with his left foot in the penalty area and easily beat Jacob Widell Zetterstrom with his right foot.

It was Japan’s seventh goal of the tournament, the country’s most for an entire World Cup. That topped the six the Japanese scored while reaching the round of 16 in Russia eight years ago.

Japan is advancing out of the group stage for the third consecutive World Cup and fifth time in seven tries since first reaching the round of 16 as co-hosts in 2002. The Japanese team finished second in Group F behind the Netherlands and will play Brazil in Houston on Monday.

“For the good of football in Japan, I think it would be a very good experience,” coach Hajime Moriyasu said through a translator of his 16th-ranked team facing No. 5 Brazil. “We do believe there's a chance for us to win. And then we hope that we will be able to move one step further move on to the next stage.”

The Swedes have advanced to the knockout round the past four times they’ve qualified for the World Cup going back to 1994 — when they reached the semifinals the last time the U.S. hosted soccer’s biggest event.

Sweden will have to wait to find out its opponent in the round of 32 next week.

“We have to probably recover the players first and make sure that physically we’re in a good place for whoever we play,” coach Graham Potter said. “We’ve got to be on our toes in terms of logistics. I would say if you had said to me when we first came that would be the challenge we’d face, I would have absolutely taken it.”

Elanga had another chance to score in injury time, with his right-footed attempted forcing goalkeeper Zion Suzuki to make a diving deflection.

On the ensuing corner kick, Suzuki deflected Alexander Isak’s header off the crossbar and into the air, eventually ending the scoring chance with a leaping grab in a crowd of players.

The Blue Samurai's bag-waving, chanting fans among 70,137 at the sold-out home of the NFL's Dallas Cowboys were persistent as a scoreless game dragged into the second half. Japan seemed content to sit back and play for a draw that would have guaranteed the same spot in the knockout round as a win.

Just like that, things changed when Doan put Maeda in perfect position to score.

Elanga wasn't anywhere near scoring range, but Suzuki appeared screened and reacted late as the shot beat him to the far post.

Just three minutes later, Isak was inside the penalty area with a great scoring chance, but Suzuki deflected it wide and over the end line, angrily gesturing toward some of his teammates as Sweden lined up for another corner kick. The Swedes had eight corner kicks to only two for Japan.

See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

Japan's Daizen Maeda (11) scores his team's first goal as Sweden's Alexander Bernhardsson (21) watches during the World Cup Group F soccer match between Japan and Sweden in Arlington, Texas, near Dallas, Thursday, June 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Sam Hodde)

Japan's Daizen Maeda (11) reacts after scoring his team's first goal during the World Cup Group F soccer match between Japan and Sweden in Arlington, Texas, near Dallas, Thursday, June 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Sam Hodde)

Japan's Daizen Maeda (11) scores their opening goal during the World Cup Group F soccer match between Japan and Sweden in Arlington, Texas, near Dallas, Thursday, June 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Sweden's Anthony Elanga celebrates scoring his side's opening goal against Japan during the World Cup Group F soccer match in Arlington, Texas, near Dallas, Thursday, June 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Japan's Daizen Maeda, right, celebrates after scoring their opening goal during the World Cup Group F soccer match between Japan and Sweden in Arlington, Texas, near Dallas, Thursday, June 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Jessica Tobias)