Texas Rangers vs Houston Astros Prediction, 4/14/2023 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Texas Rangers vs Houston Astros

Date: Friday, April 14, 2023

Location: Minute Maid Park in Houston, TX

TV: AT&T SportsNet Southwest

Odds/Point Spread: Texas (+165) Houston (-195)

The Texas Rangers (7-5) are traveling to Minute Maid Park on Friday where they will compete against the Houston Astros (6-7). The line on this contest has Texas at +165 while Houston is sitting at -195. The over/under is 8.5. The pitchers taking the mound will be Martin Perez and Luis Garcia.

The Rangers have tallied 23 two-baggers as a team and have knocked 14 baseballs out of the park. Texas has a slugging percentage of .410 and have struck out 99 times, while drawing a walk on 37 occasions. As a unit, the Texas Rangers are recording 5.6 runs per game, which is 4th in baseball. They have earned 64 runs batted in as well as 97 hits over the course of the season, and their average at the plate is at .243. They have racked up 67 runs while having a team OBP of .310.

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The Rangers have a team earned run average of 3.95 for the season (9th in baseball), and the staff has rung up 123 batters. They have earned a K/BB ratio of 3.62 and their pitching staff has a collective WHIP of 1.25. Rangers pitchers have conceded 10 home runs and 53 runs in total (10th in baseball). Their pitching staff has walked 34 opposing hitters and their FIP is 3.30 as a squad this year.

The Rangers relief pitchers have accumulated a save rate of 66.7% and has stepped onto the mound in 10 save situations. The relief pitchers have inherited 20 base runners so far this season with 35.0% of those runners ended up scoring. Rangers bullpen pitchers have entered the game with runners on 12 times and also have had 6 appearances in high leverage situations. The Rangers have dispatched 34 relief pitchers to the hill for the season. The relief pitchers have a total of 6 holds on the campaign (18th in MLB). They have compiled 2 saves this season and have missed out on 1 out of their 3 save chances.

The Rangers have turned 65.5% of balls in play into outs out of 963 innings, which ranks them 27th in professional baseball. The Texas Rangers have earned 321 putouts so far this season, as well as 89 assists and 8 errors. Their fielding rate sits at .981 which ranks 27th in MLB, and they have turned 12 double plays.

Perez has thrown 1,309 innings and has 921 punch outs thus far in his career. Perez (76-78 career mark) is the owner of a FIP of 4.34 and he has gone up against 5,690 batters in the major leagues. His ERA is 4.42 (643 earned runs allowed) and he has a career WHIP of 1.447. He has surrendered 1,422 hits (9.8 hits per nine innings) and has 473 walks.

Houston has accounted for 14 home runs on the season as well as 64 RBIs. They have put up 20 two-baggers, while walking 50 times as well as putting up 66 runs. The Houston Astros have accumulated a team OBP of .337 and a batting average of .256 on the season. The Astros have a team SLG% of .392 and they are scoring 5.08 runs per contest (9th in the league). They have been called out on strikes on 113 occasions (11th in the league) and have notched a total of 116 base hits.

The Astros hold a team WHIP of 1.314 with a FIP of 4.11 as a team so far this year. They come in at 24th in the league as a staff in total hits given up with 114. The Houston pitching staff have surrendered 53 runs this season while having a team ERA of 3.76 (49 earned runs given up). They currently have a K/BB ratio of 3.00 (120 strikeouts against 40 free passes). They have conceded 14 homers and they concede 4.07 runs per 9 innings (5th in the league).

Sitting with 7 save situations, the Astros have earned 2 holds and also 3 blown saves. Houston has had relief pitchers enter the contest in 5 save opportunities and they have come away with 2 saves. Their relievers have stepped onto the mound 13 times in high leverage situations in addition to 7 occasions with base runners. Houston relief pitchers have an inherited score rate of 30.0% out of their 10 inherited base runners. They sit at 26th in baseball holding a save percentage of 40.0%, and they have dispatched 43 relievers to the mound this season.

The Houston Astros have gotten 8 double plays and have a fielding percentage of .994 (3rd in MLB). The Astros have recorded 123 assists, 3 errors and have accumulated 353 putouts on the campaign. In 1,059 innings on the field, the Astros are sitting with a defensive efficiency of 68.3% (19th in pro baseball).

During his MLB career, Garcia has allowed 284 base knocks and he has 341 punch outs in 334 frames. He has allowed 136 earned runs while earning a WHIP of 1.171 and a FIP of 3.9. His strikeout to walk ratio is 3.19 and he has faced 1,370 batters in his MLB career. Garcia (26-18 career win-loss record) has a 3.66 earned run average and has given up 7.7 hits per nine innings.

Who will win tonight's MLB game against the spread or moneyline?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Houston (-195)

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