Tag: Astros Rangers betting odds lines picks best bets predictions

The Texas Rangers (20-38) host division rival Houston Astros (29-29) Friday for the second of the final four-game series of 2020 in the Globe Life Field. The first pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. ET. Below, we analyze the Astros-Rangers MLB betting odds and lines, with picks and best bets.

Season series: Houston leads 5-3.

Playoff picture: Houston clinched a postseason berth for the fourth consecutive year. Texas is eliminated from playoff contention.

Astros at Rangers: Projected starting pitchers

RHP Lance McCullers vs. RHP Kyle Gibson

McCullers: 3-3 with a 4.24 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 8.3 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 in 51 IP over 10 GS.

• Last start: Loss, 6-1, with 6 2/3 IP, 3 H, 0 ER (4 R), 7 K and 2 BB at the Seattle Mariners on Sept. 21.
• Career vs. Rangers: 1-4 with a 4.65 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 60 K and 12 BB in 40 2/3 IP over 8 GS.

Gibson: 2-6 with a 5.87 ERA, 1.57 WHIP, 7.9 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9 in 61 1/3 IP over 11 GS.

• Last start: Loss, 8-5, with 4 IP, 5 H, 7 ER, 4 K and 4 BB at the Los Angeles Angels on Sept. 21.
• Career vs. Astros: 4-2 with a 2.90 ERA, 1.54 WHIP, 39 K and 21 BB in 49 2/3 IP over 8 GS.

Place your legal, online baseball wagers in CO, IN, NJ and WV at BetMGM, The King of Sportsbooks. Terms and conditions apply. Bet now!

Astros at Rangers: Key injuries

(Get the latest injury news here.)

Astros

• RP Brad Peacock (shoulder) out
• RP Josh James (undisclosed) out

Rangers

• C Jose Trevino (wrist) out
• SS Elvis Andrus (back) out
• 3B Sherten Apostel (back) out
• OF Shin-Soo Choo (wrist) out
• SS Anderson Tejeda (arm) out

Astros at Rangers: Odds, lines, picks and betting tips

MLB odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full list. Odds last updated at 8:45 a.m. ET.

Prediction

Rangers 4, Astros 2

Money line (ML)

The Astros (-189) clinched a playoff berth last night even though they lost to Texas, 5-4, in extra innings thanks to the Los Angeles Dodgers beating the Los Angeles Angles to lock up second place in the AL West for Houston.

The Rangers (+170) have nothing to play for and a pretty extensive injury report. However, what that tells me is that there are a lot of Rangers playing for future employment. So there’s the one motivational angle in Astros-Rangers.

The Astros have been a terrible road team all season (9-21) and the Rangers are a .500 team at home (14-14). Plus there has to be a natural inclination for Houston to have a little senioritis with the regular season.

Let’s take a flyer on RANGERS (+170) to pull off an “upset”. New to sports betting? A $50 bet on the Rangers (+170) pays an $85 profit if Texas upsets Houston.

Run line/Against the spread (ATS)

Kyle Gibson’s numbers against the Astros are very good considering the recent Houston teams he’s pitched against. His last start against the Astros was his first complete-game shutout in Gibson’s career.

The Astros -1.5 (-125) is tied for the third-worst cover percentage against the run line in MLB and is just 5-11 RL as a road favorite. The Rangers +1.5 (+105) is slightly more reliable on the RL as a home underdog (10-10 RL) and is 5-3 RL against Houston in 2020.

Let’s get some insurance on our money line play and BET RANGERS +1.5 (+105). New to sports betting? A $100 bet on the Rangers +1.5 (+105) returns a $105 profit if Texas wins or loses by only a run.

Over/Under (O/U)

These two sides have the second- and third-worst Over percentage in MLB and have a combined Over/Under record of 48-68 O/U this year. The Under is 9-3-1 in the last 13 Astros-Rangers games, six of Gibson’s eight career starts against Houston have gone Under and five of McCullers’s eight 2020 starts have gone Under.

TAKE UNDER 9 (-110) in this spot.

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The Houston Astros (29-28) are playing the intrastate, division rival Texas Rangers (19-38) in the second game of a four-game series at Globe Life Field. The first pitch is scheduled for 8:05 p.m. ET. Below, we analyze the Astros-Rangers MLB betting odds and lines, with picks and best bets.

Season series: Houston leads 5-2.

Playoff picture:  The Astros clinch a playoff berth and second place in the AL West with a win over the Rangers. Houston’s magic number is one.

Astros at Rangers: Projected starting pitchers

RHP Jose Urquidy vs. RHP Kyle Cody

Urquidy: 1-1 with a 2.78 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, 4.8 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 in 22 2/3 IP over 4 GS.

• Last start (Sept. 20): No-decision with 6 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 2 K and 2 BB in a 3-2 Astros win versus the Arizona Diamondbacks.
• This is Urquidy’s second season in the majors, and he has started two games against the Rangers. He’s 2-0 with 14 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 16 K and 0 BB (both were home games).

Cody: 1-1 with a 1.53 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, 8.7 K/9 and 5.1 BB/9 in 17 2/3 IP over 7 games (4 starts).

• Last start (Sept. 20): Win, 7-2, with 5 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 5 K and 0 BB at the Los Angeles Angels.
• Cody is in his rookie season and has only one start against the Astros. It was a no-decision in which he pitched three innings, giving up one earned run and four hits with one strikeout and two walks.

Place your legal baseball wagers in CO, IN, NJ and WV at BetMGM. Terms and conditions apply. Bet now!

Astros at Rangers: Key injuries

(Get the latest injury news here.)

Astros

• RP Brad Peacock (shoulder) out
• OF Yordan Alvarez (knee) out
• RP Roberto Osuna (elbow) out

Rangers

• SS Elvis Andrus (back) out
• OF Shin-Soo Choo (hand) out
• OF Danny Santana (elbow) out
• RP Jose Leclerc (shoulder) out

Astros at Rangers: Odds, lines, picks and betting tips

MLB odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full list. Odds last updated at 11:40 a.m. ET.

Prediction

Astros 6, Rangers 1

Money line (ML)

The Astros (-182) are an expensive favorite despite having an abysmal road record this season (9-20) because they can smell the postseason. The Rangers (+165) are struggling to end their 2020, losing 12-4 last night to the Astros, and they’ve lost seven of their last eight games overall.

It’s a clinch-game for Houston and Texas is probably worried about its offseason plans. It’s a square angle but the Astros’ motivation edge is too strong.

If the run line was cheaper I’d avoid the money line and chase the value, but since you have to eat chalk to bet Houston minus a run and a half, let’s just BET ASTROS (-182) on the money line.

New to sports betting? A $182 bet on the Astros (-182) pays a $100 profit if Houston beats Texas.

Run line/Against the spread (ATS)

PASS ON THE RUN LINE because the Astros -1.5 (-121) are a bad road team (13-16 on the run line in away game). Second, four of the seven Astros-Rangers games this season have been decided by one run. Third, Houston is 17-20 RL vs. divisional foes.

Over/Under (O/U)

Let’s source a few trends to explain why we lean UNDER 9 (-110):

• The Under is 9-3 in the last 12 Astros-Rangers meetings.
• The Under is 4-0 in Urquidy’s last four starts with the total set at 9.0-10.5.
• The Under is 6-1 in the Rangers’ last seven games with the total set at 9.0-10.5.

A “lean” is not necessarily a bet. Proceed at your own caution.

Want some action on this game? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting tips and advice, visit SportsbookWire.com. Please gamble responsibly.

Follow @Geoffery_Clark on Twitter. Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter and like us on Facebook.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

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