Due to one blatantly missed call in the ninth inning, it seemed as though the reigning World Series champion Texas Rangers were going to suffer a loss to the Chicago Cubs on Opening Day. But Travis Jankowski took matters upon his own hands and made sure that the home plate umpire's error wouldn't come back to haunt them.

To begin the ninth inning, the Rangers called upon Jankowski to pinch hit, and the 32-year old outfielder delivered. He worked the count full before unleashing a monster solo shot to right field, tying the game up at 3-3 before Jonah Heim sealed the deal later on in the 10th inning with a walk-off single to give the Rangers a 4-3 Opening Day win over the Cubs.

At the top of the ninth inning, the Cubs had runners on first and second base with two outs with Miles Mastrobuoni on the plate. Mastrobuoni appeared to hit a low foul ball that bounced back towards the dish, which the umpire misinterpreted as a passed ball. This allowed the Cubs' lead runner, Michael Busch, to score the go-ahead run at such a crucial juncture in the game.

It's difficult to expect perfection from umpires. But umpires in the MLB are professionals for a reason, as they have the skills to determine which call to make with the snap of a finger. However, it's frustrating when these kinds of mistakes happen at crucial moments in the game, and the Rangers will merely be thanking their lucky stars that Travis Jankowski came in and saved them from what would have been an anger-inducing way to lose a ballgame.

Travis Jankowski may have already reached his home run quota

When it comes to the discussion of power hitters, Rangers outfielder Travis Jankowski is not among the first players that come to fans' minds. Jankowski has a career slugging percentage of .314, having hit just 10 home runs total in his nine seasons in the MLB before he launched an Opening Day dinger that came to his team's rescue.

Sure, he hit 90 percent of his career home runs against a right-handed pitcher, which Cubs closer Adbert Alzolay is, but 90 percent of 10 is nine (and he reached that total in 1,502 plate appearances). His performance in high-leverage situations isn't anything to write home about either.

When the Rangers called upon Jankowski to pinch hit to begin the inning, the expectation may have been for him to get on base. His speed at least makes him a late-game weapon on the basepaths if he does end up getting on base. He stole 19 bases for the Rangers last season, making him a perfectly capable utility weapon for the reigning World Series champion.

Now, Jankowski has one home run on the season, making it rather unlikely that he hits one again for the rest of the year. After all, he finished last season with a grand total of one long ball, and he hasn't hit more than four dingers in a single campaign for his career. But the Rangers definitely got power production from one of the least likely sources at the most opportune moment.

Rangers begin their World Series defense on the best note possible

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The Rangers' late-game execution remains near-unparalleled in today's MLB. After Travis Jankowski's heroics, it was catcher Jonah Heim's turn for his “ball don't lie” moment, hitting an opposite-field single to drive in the winning run not too long after his alleged passed ball nearly cost them the game.

Nathan Eovaldi was on point to start the year, allowing just two runs on six innings, and the credibility of the only run allowed by their bullpen courtesy of Jose Leclerc, as has been established, is dubious at best.

Texas' title defense continues on Saturday when they take on the Cubs to continue their opening series of the 2024 season.