A critical AL West showdown is on track to take place this evening as the Texas Rangers travel to Minute Maid Park to begin a three-game series with the Houston Astros. Join us for our MLB odds series, where our Rangers-Astros prediction and pick will be revealed.
With a 48-60 record entering play on Tuesday, time is running out on the Rangers' season. With desperation at an all-time high, Texas will send out lefty Martin Perez, who has a 9-2 record with a 2.47 ERA on the year.
After a three-game winning streak, the Astros have surprisingly dropped two straight at the hands of the Guardians. Still at a remarkable 70-40, Houston will be eager to get back on track in pursuit of the AL's best overall record with RHP Jose Uquirdy on the bump. Through 20 regular season starts, Uquirdy possesses a 10-4 record to go along with a 3.62 ERA.
Here are the Rangers-Astros MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Rangers-Astros Odds
Texas Rangers: +1.5 (-130)
Houston Astros: -1.5 (+108)
Over: 7.5 (-120)
Under: 7.5 (-102)
Why The Rangers Could Cover The Spread
In their last five series coming after the All-Star Break, the Rangers have gone 1-3-1, which has further signaled there is more problems than not on this roster moving forward. It didn't seem too long ago when prior to the season, Texas was big spenders in trying to transform the organization's culture into a winning one. With the signing of SS Corey Seager, it seemed like Texas was ready to start their winning ways. While things don't always go as planned and with postseason play appearing to be doubtful, the least the Rangers could do is cover the spread in tonight's divisional duel.
For starters, Texas certainly cannot have a repeat of their series-losing contests against the White Sox when they were humiliated by a score of 8-2. Surprisingly, for a team that is currently 12 games below the .500 mark, the Rangers are capable of performing much better on the mound than what they showed against Chicago. In fact, Texas is ranked 21st in team ERA and even 15th in batting average allowed as a whole, so a gritty effort from Martin Perez could go a long way. Not to mention, but Perez has been dominant against the Astros this season with a 0.56 ERA in 16 innings pitched.
Offensively is where the Rangers could also use some work. While Texas has managed to muster up 481 runs this season, which is good for 15th most in the league, their inability to reach base tells a different story of a squad that has been largely inconsistent in 2022. Expect the bats to appear a little fresher after Monday's off day signaled the first rest day after playing in 18 consecutive contests.
Why The Astros Could Cover The Spread
When it comes to the total makeup of a team's roster, few teams in the majors pose as dangerous of a threat as the Houston Astros of 2022. Whether it's keeping hitters off-balanced within the batter's box or slugging home runs off of opposing pitching, this roster definitely has the pieces to contend for another World Series.
To begin, Houston will be squaring off with a Texas team that has gone down in defeat in 15 of their last 22 games. Similar to Texas, the Astros stormed out of the All-Star Break with a daunting scheduled slate that saw themselves having to play in 19 games over an 18-day stretch. Since sweeping the Yankees on July 21st, they finished a disappointing 11-8 in Astros standards before finally receiving an off-day yesterday.
With their batteries recharged, be on the lookout for the ‘Stros and their bats to leave their mark in this one. On the season, Houston has actually been a middle-of-the-road type team with the sticks, as they rank 13th with 486 total runs, and 16th with a .241 batting average. The two statistical categories that the Astros have excelled in, come from a .316 on-base percentage and a .422 slugging percentage, both ranking 10th and 6th respectively.
Rested bats could prove to be just what the doctor ordered, as well as the dominance of Jose Uquirdy over the course of his last nine outings. During those appearances, Uquirdy has recorded nine consecutive quality starts and has pitched to the tune of a 2.29 ERA over that hot stretch. With a tenth straight performance where he pitches deep into this one, a spread-covering win is all but certain for this Astros bunch.
Final Rangers-Astros Prediction & Pick
This matchup has the making of an epic pitchers duel. With both hurlers on an absolute tear of late, this game will come down to which arm will make the first mistake. Simply put, the Astros are just the better crew here and are playing for home-field advantage in the postseason as they try to keep up with the Yankees in the American League. Take Houston and the spread in this one.
Final Rangers-Astros Prediction & Pick: Astros -1.5 (+108)
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