Astros vs. Rangers Pick
Hurricane Harvey has moved the Texas Rangers vs. Houston Astros series to a neutral setting at Tampa Bay’s Tropicana Field. First pitch is 7:10PM EST.
According to oddsmakers at Bovada.lv, the Astros are listed as a -142 favorite on the moneyline. The Rangers are a +122 underdog, while the over-under is 10.
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Martin Perez (9-10, 5.00 ERA) gets the start for Texas, while Houston goes with Mike Fiers (8-8, 4.17). Perez has a 1.54 WHIP with 90 strikeouts in 144 innings. He is coming off a strong start as he threw seven shutout innings with three strikeouts in a 3-0 win at the Angels. The Rangers have won his last four starts. Fiers has a 1.31 WHIP with 137 strikeouts in 140 1/3 innings. He was also good in his last start, allowing one earned run on four hits with six strikeouts in a 6-1 win over the Nationals.
Houston comes in with a 64-66 record, while Houston is 79-51. The two teams have split the last 10 matchups, while the over-under is 3-5-2.
The Astros won two out of three at the Angels including Sunday’s 7-5 victory. A three-run triple by Brian McCann in the eighth inning was the difference. He had two hits and drove in four. Jose Altuve was 2-for-4 with a home run, two runs and two RBIs. Josh Reddick was 3-for-4 with two runs. Joe Musgrove earned the win in relief, while Ken Giles picked up his 26th save. The Rangers were swept in a three-game series at Oakland, with Sunday’s game being an 8-3 defeat. Shin Soo Choo homered, while Adrian Beltre was 2-for-4 with a double and a run. A.J. Griffin allowed three earned runs in 3 1/3 innings to take the loss.
The Astros have to be in a weary state with the hurricane displacing them for the time being. In a neutral setting, the playing field is evened and there is a lot of data to suggest the Rangers are still a good team that has experienced a lot of bad luck this season. Perez is coming off a strong start and when he’s going right, he can frustrate hitters. Take the underdog.
MLB DAILY PREDICTION: TEXAS RANGERS +122