The AL West-leading Astros and wild-card chasing Rangers begin a three-game in-state rivalry series Friday night in H-Town. How are we playing this game with our free MLB pick?
MLB Betting Odds
Friday’s MLB betting odds opened Houston at around -225 over Texas, with an over/under of 8.5 runs. Early betting action then dropped the hook off that total.
The Astros could also be found at many sportsbooks at around -115 giving the run and a half on the MLB run line.
Rangers vs. Astros Set-Up
Texas just got swept two games at home by Arizona, losing Wednesday’s series finale 19-4. The Rangers then had Thursday off.
Last weekend Texas split four games with Houston, winning the first two but losing the previous two. Just before that the Rangers lost two of three to Minnesota; just before that they lost two of three to the Angels; and just before that they lost two of three to Tampa Bay. So Texas is 0-4-1 over its last five series and 4-10 over its last 14 games.
At 50-46 overall the Rangers trail the first-place Astros by ten games in the AL West, and they’re 4.5 games behind Oakland and the Rays in the battle for the second American League wild-card spot.
Houston, meanwhile, just split four games out in Anaheim, winning Thursday’s series finale 6-2. Just before that, as mentioned above, the Astros split four games with Texas. So Houston is 4-4 over its last eight games.
At 61-37 overall the Astros lead the AL West by 5.5 games over the second-place A’s, and they trail the Yankees by just 2.5 games in the battle for the best record in the American League.
Houston leads the season series with the Rangers eight games to six.
Friday’s Starting Arms
Verlander, by our strict standards, is 13/20 on quality starts this season but recorded only one for his last three. Last Sunday, he limited this Texas team to two runs and four hits through six innings of a 12-4 Houston victory. But, over his two starts previous to that he gave up eight runs and 12 hits, including five dingers, through 12 innings.
The Astros are 14-6 with Verlander this season and 3-1 over his last four starts, thanks in part to some good run support.
Over four starts already this season against the Rangers Verlander allowed seven runs and 14 hits through 24 innings. Houston won three of those four games.
Lefty Minor is 10/19 on quality starts this year but 0 for his last two. Last Saturday he gave up four runs on seven hits through five innings of a 7-6 Texas loss to these Astros. And his previous time out he gave up three runs on two hits and four walks through 4 1/3 innings against the Angels.
The Rangers are 10-9 with Minor this year but 0-2 his last two starts.
Over three starts already this year against Houston Minor allowed seven runs and 19 hits through 17 innings. Texas lost two of those three games.
Friday’s Batting Splits
Texas is batting .260/.335/.455 against right-handed pitching this season.
Houston is batting .286/.371/.511 against left-handed pitching this season, which ranks this lineup No. 1 in the Majors in this split.
The Bullpens
The Rangers bullpen owns a 4.93 ERA this season and a 1.48 WHIP while allowing an .813 OPS. But some of those numbers must be attributed to the ballpark this unit operates in half the time.
The Astros pen owns a 3.82 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP while allowing a .692 OPS. Numbers like those help this unit rank among the top three bullpens in Baseball.
Totals Report
- Totals are split 47-47 in Rangers games this season.
- Unders are 50-43 in Astros games this season.
- Unders are 23-20 in games played at Minute Maid Park this season.
- Overs are 8-6 in Rangers-Astros games this season.
- Unders are a combined 25-13 with Verlander and Minor this season.
- Get more details: Rangers at Astros MLB Match-up Stats
