Texas Rangers vs Houston Astros Betting Picks, Predictions, Odds & Lines

The second matchup of a 4-game series between the Rangers and the Astros takes place tonight at the Minute Maid Park. Houston won the first contest 4-3. The Astros are coming to the game sitting second in the AL West, one game behind the A’s in the loss column. Overall, Houston is 21-17. They’ve been in decent form lately, winning 6 times in their last 6 games. The Astros came out as winners in their last two series against the Blue Jays and the Angels. Their interstate rivals, the Rangers, are currently second from the bottom in the division with the 18-21 record. They have now lost three straight games. This is the first of the three series between the two teams this season. The next one is scheduled less than a week after this one finishes. The Minute Maid Park has a retractable roof, but there are 0% chances of rain anyway. The wind is expected at 13 mph SE.

Texas Rangers vs Houston Astros Betting Odds & Line Movement

The Rangers are firm favorites in tonight’s game and are priced from -210 to -240 depending on a bookie. The odds on Rangers vary from +195 to +205

Notes On The Texas Rangers

The Rangers found some form at the start of the month and won 5 out of 6 games against Minnesota and Seattle. However, prior to coming to Houston, they were swept in a 2-game series by the Giants. All in all, they have outperformed preseason expectations that they’ll be one of the worst teams in the league. Before this series, the Rangers were 5th in the majors with 47 home runs and 8th with a .243 team batting average. The right fielder Adolis Garcia has been a particularly pleasant surprise hitting 9 home runs and 26 RBI.

Tonight’s starter at the mound for the Rangers is Wes Benjamin. This will be the second career start for the 27-year-old leftie. He has 11 total career appearances with a 4.82 ERA and a 2-2 record. This season, he’s 0-1 with a 4.76 ERA. He has only one relief appearance against Houston last season allowing 2 hits.

Notes On The Texas Rangers

After a poor start to the season, Houston has found the form lately and looks primed to take the AL West. The Astros have been on fire lately, scoring at least 4 runs in the last 8 games. As their pitching staff had plenty of injury issues, their offense kept them afloat. They lead the MLB with a .262 batting average and 8.92 hits per game. The Astros are also 3rd with 5.14 runs per game. The balanced lineup is led by Yordan Alvarez who has 7 home runs, 22 RBI, and a .347 batting average.

Zack Greinke will make his 9th start this season tonight. The experienced right-handed pitcher is 1-2 so far with a 4.23 ERA and 1.30 WHIP. This will be his 17th career start against the Rangers. So far, Greinke is 4-6 against them with a 2.99 ERA, and 1.08 WHIP.

Texas Rangers vs Houston Astros Betting Pick & Prediction: Houston -1.5 (-115)

Zack Greinke may be aging but he’s still a quality hurdler. In his last 11 starts, the Astros are 9-2 and 6wins came by more than 2 runs margin. Houston’s deep lineup should be able to deal with Wes Benjamin who’s thrown only 5.2 innings in the majors this season.