Saturday's slate of MLB action rolls on as we bring you another prediction and pick for this matchup between two of the MLB's best teams. The Texas Rangers (40-22) will square off against the Tampa Bay Rays (47-19) for the second installment of their three game series. The Rays won convincingly last night to the tune of 8-3. Check out our MLB odds series for our Rangers-Rays prediction and pick.
The Texas Rangers are currently in first place in the AL West and have the second-most wins in the MLB. The Rangers have dialed-in their pitching staff and sport one of the hardest hitting lineups in baseball. They've gone 14-6 over their last 20 games and have a firm five-game lead over their in-state rival Houston Astros. They dropped the first game of this series and will try to avoid a third-straight loss. Nathan Eovaldi (RHP) will be their starter.
The Tampa Bay Rays are the best team in baseball and currently have a commanding 6.5-game lead in the AL East. They're the leaders of baseball's toughest division and will have to keep up their frantic pace if they want to best the Orioles and Yankees this year. They're also winners of their last seven games and have outscored opponents by 22 runs during that stretch. They got their bats going last night and will hope for another statement win at home. Taj Bradley (RHP) will be their starter.
Here are the Rangers-Rays MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Rangers-Rays Odds
Texas Rangers: -1.5 (+158)
Tampa Bay Rays: +1.5 (-192)
Over (8): -112
Under (8): -108
How To Watch Rangers vs. Rays
TV: Bally Sports Sun, Bally Sports Southwest
Stream: MLB.TV, fuboTV
Time: 4:10 p.m. ET/ 1:10 p.m. PT
*Watch MLB games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Rangers Could Cover The Spread
The Texas Rangers were stunned to hear the news of Jacob deGrom's injury as one of the MLB's best pitchers gets the season (and likely the next) with his new team cut short. The Rangers will have to dig deep and rally as a pitching staff after the loss of their ace. They'll find comfort knowing that their lineup is the best in the league right now and can provide run support to pitchers at any point. The Rangers rank first in MLB batting average at .275 and lead the league with 374 RBI. They're also first in hits and have had 31 quality starts out of their pitching staff, much to do with Jacob deGrom's success. As the slightest favorite, the feeling is that their bats will wake up again in this one.
Nate Eovaldi will take the reigns as the Rangers ace and does so behind an 8-2 record. He's had a number of quality starts and has a clean 2.24 ERA thru 80 innings of work. Eovaldi has also found the strikeout with 77 and has a great 0.93 WHIP. Against the Rays lineup, Eovaldi should see some success with his fastballs. He's only given up three homers thus far and doesn't plan on letting the Rays get to him in this one. The Rangers clearly have the edge on the mound and the betting lines suggest Eovaldi could be the difference-maker in this one.
Why The Rays Could Cover The Spread
The Rays are on a serious hot streak right now and are enjoying this upcoming stint at home. They're 30-6 when playing at Tropicana Field this year and have gone 37-16 against RHP. They also saw the return of Tyler Glasnow to the mound as he got his first win in over 2 years. Isaac Paredes had a career night as he homered twice and drove in six runs. It was business as usual for the Rays as they asserted their dominance over the next-best team in the MLB. They're a unique mix of power and speed, leading the league both in home runs and stolen bases. The Rays also rank top-five in average, hits, and RBI. If they can get their bats going again, they could extend their win streak to eight.
Taj Bradley will start with a 4-2 record and 3.60 ERA thru 35 IP. He certainly hasn't been tight for the Rays giving up four homer and 33 hits, but he's done enough through the first five innings of games to lift the Rays to some wins. The squad, as a whole, is seeing the ball very well as they've gone on to sweep their last two series. Sweeping the Rangers in this spot will be tough, but the Rays have thrived against the Rangers in recent contests.
Final Rangers-Rays Prediction & Pick
Eight will be the magic number in this game as Nathan Eovaldi goes for his eighth-straight win, the Rays looked for their eighth-straight as a team, and the total is set at eight. The Rays have been on an impressive run and their batters are feeling extremely locked-in at the moment. Eovaldi is equally locked-in with his pitching, but the Rangers have only managed three runs over the last two games. Against Tampa Bay, those totals won't cut it. While Eovaldi may have a good performance here, don't count the Rays out of this game at any point.
Final Rangers-Rays Prediction & Pick: Tampa Bay Rays (-116)
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