DETROIT _ Adrian Beltre was in the Rangers' starting lineup as the designated hitter a day after having a root canal in Dallas.
Beltre, who was a late scratch for Wednesday's game against the Astros, left Globe Life Park around 5 p.m. Wednesday when a dentist became available in Dallas.
Beltre had had a crown placed on the tooth a few days before, when he started feeling pain on Tuesday evening. Finding a dentist on the Fourth of July was a bit tricky but Rangers' trainer Kevin Harmon helped Beltre locate one.
"The doctor was nice enough to see me once he found a dental assistant," Beltre said. "I really appreciated it. I don't know where they came from but they were there."
Beltre said he was done with the procedure just before 7 p.m. He said he felt fine before Thursday's series opener against the Tigers.
"The things this guy has played through and you're questioning whether he's going to play after a root canal?" Rangers manager Jeff Banister said in jest. "Come on now. Shame on you."
Banister knows about tooth pain. During a 10-day road trip a year ago he was in need of some dental relief so badly that he nearly resorted to having Harmon yank the infected tooth in the clubhouse in Tampa.
"I shut that door in the office in Tampa and told (Harmon) to go get a pair of pliers because I was in so much pain I tried to get him to pull that tooth straight out of my head," Banister said.
"I know the root canal is instant relief so anything he's feeling is much better than the pain he was feeling."
