On Saturday night, the Texas Rangers will face off against the Houston Astros in Houston. The Astros won the first two games of the series 4-2 and 3-0. The Rangers are 17-19 on the year, while Houston is 24-15 and has won three straight games.
Lance Lynn gave the Rangers a good outing and kept them in the game on Friday night. He allowed three runs on six hits and a walk while striking out eight, and the bullpen gave them one scoreless inning. But the bats just couldn’t get going. The Rangers were only able to manage two hits and two walks the entire game off Astros pitching. Shin Soo Choo went 1 for 4, and Asdrubal Cabrera went 1 for 3, which were the only Texas hits, and Joey Gallo and Hunter Pence each drew a walk.
Justin Verlander was absolutely brilliant for the Astros in this one. He went seven innings and gave up just one hit and two walks while striking out four. The bats were relatively quiet as well, and they only managed to get six hits. Jake Marisnick has a good game and went 2 for 3 with a double and a home run. Yuli Gurriel and Robinson Chirinos hit back to back solo home runs in the 7th inning for their only hits of the game. Jose Altuve went 1 for 1 before leaving with an injury, and Michael Brantley went 1 for 4.
Chavez To The Mound
Jesse Chavez will be on the mound for the Rangers. He is 0-1 with a 7.27 ERA in 16 appearances this season and has a 1.90 WHIP with 13 strikeouts in 17 1/3 innings. Last season he went 5-2 with a 2.55 ERA in 62 appearances.
The Rangers players have just 52 at-bats against Houston starter Gerrit Cole in his career, and they have 13 hits for a .250 average. Joey Gallo is 2 for 6, with both hits being home runs. Logan Forsythe is 3 for 3, and Hunter Pence is 4 for 11. Elvis Andrus and Isiah Kiner-Falefa each have one hit, and Jeff Mathis is just 2 for 10.
Cole Trying To Get Going
Gerrit Cole will get the start for the Astros in this one. He has struggled to begin the year and is 3-4 with a 4.17 ERA in eight starts so far with a 1.05 WHIP and 74 strikeouts in 49 2/3 innings. Last season, he went 15-5 with a 2.88 ERA in 32 starts.
The Astros have gone 22 for 67 against Chavez, which is good for a .328 average. Michael Brantley is 3 for 7 with two home runs, while Josh Reddick is 3 for 7 with one home run. Alex Bregman, Gurriel, and Chirinos each have two hits off Chavez. Jose Altuve is 7 for 25, and George Springer is 2 for 11.
Astros Get The Win
The Astros are -310. There is absolutely no way Houston loses this game. Gerrit Cole has been one of the best pitchers in the league over the past few years and has been finding his form back of late. Jesse Chavez is having a bad year and has struggled against the Astros in his career. The Astros will explode for 10+ runs en route to an easy victory. Take the Astros -310 or -1.5 runs.
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