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The Texas Rangers take on the Los Angeles Angels. Our MLB odds series has our Rangers Angels prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Rangers Angels.
The Texas Rangers and Los Angeles Angels arrived at this weekend series as the first and second-place teams in the American League West. The Rangers improved their pitching to complement a formidable top half of the batting order. The Angels have managed, in recent weeks, to create offensive production from sources beyond Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani, giving their batting order a lot more bite and discovering the balance which marks a successful baseball team.
The successes of the Rangers and Angels have coexisted with the struggles of the Houston Astros and Seattle Mariners, two 2022 playoff teams which entered Friday night in third and fourth place in the West, behind Texas and Los Angeles. What would this weekend do to shift the balance of power in this division?
Friday night offered quite a plot twist in that regard.
The Rangers, thanks to some bad defense by the Angels, scored early and took a 4-1 lead to the bottom of the ninth inning in Anaheim. The Rangers were about to grab an important victory — partly because they would gain a game on the Angels in the standings, but mostly to establish their own confidence while denting the Angels' morale. Landing the first blow in a series between two unproven teams would have been important for the Rangers. They were just three outs away with a three-run advantage.
They couldn't hold the lead.
Both Texas and the Halos have below-average bullpens, and on Friday, it was the Rangers' pen which faltered. The Angels scored three runs in the bottom of the ninth to tie, and then won it 5-4 in the 10th to stun their visitors from the Lone Star State. Immediately, we are confronted with a juicy question: Will that one game rattle the Rangers and cause them to go into a tailspin? We certainly saw a few rough losses create a very long losing streak for the Angels in May and early June of last season which effectively derailed their whole campaign. This game is a real gut-check moment for the 2023 Texas Rangers. It will be fascinating to watch.
Here are the Rangers-Angels MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Rangers-Angels Odds
Texas Rangers: +1.5 (-170)
Los Angeles Angels: -1.5 (+138)
Over: 9.5 (-102)
Under: 9.5 (-120)
How To Watch Rangers vs. Angels
TV: Bally Sports Southwest (Rangers) / Bally Sports West (Angels) / MLB Extra Innings
Article Continues Below
Stream: MLB.tv
Time: 9:07 p.m. ET/6:07 p.m. PT
*Watch Rangers-Angels LIVE on fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Rangers Could Cover The Spread
The Rangers didn't get everything out of their offense they wanted in the first game of this series on Friday. They could have done better. Expect them to be better here. The other — and bigger — reason to pick the Rangers is that after a very frustrating and bitter defeat, they will want to come back to the diamond and bounce back. They know this series is important, and they know it's too early in the year to get depressed and deflated based on one horrible loss. Texas should be in a good frame of mind, and the Angels — outplayed for the first eight innings of last night's game — are not the better team in this matchup.
Why The Angels Could Cover The Spread
The Angels' winning streak continues to grow. The confidence in the clubhouse continues to rise. When an unproven team begins a big series with first place on the line in its division, and it is able to erase a three-run deficit in the ninth inning to win, that's a big shot in the arm for everyone. The Angels are flowing with positive vibes, while the Rangers have to be doubting themselves for the first time all season. This game sets up well for the Angels, and it could be the continuation of a negative trend for Texas, which might spend this Saturday evening contest dwelling on the fish that got away on Friday night.
Final Rangers-Angels Prediction & Pick
The Rangers are getting a run and a half on the run line in a game where they will be highly motivated. Take Texas.
Final Rangers-Angels Prediction & Pick: Rangers +1.5
