Texas Rangers vs. Houston Astros Free Pick 4/15/23

Texas Rangers vs. Houston Astros
Date: Saturday, April 15th, 7:10 ET
Location: Minute Maid Park
TV: MLBN
Money Line: Tex +152/Hou -180 (Deposit $100, get $100 FREE with code PREDICT100 at MyBookie!)
Total Line: 8

Betting Preview

Here’s our betting preview for the upcoming MLB clash between the Houston Astros and the Rangers on Saturday, April 15th at Minute Maid Park. We provide you with a comprehensive analysis, odds, and predictions to help with your handicapping decision or tail our expert based on the projected lineups and listed starting pitchers.

Betting Odds

Rangers vs. Astros Projected Lineup

	Batting Order	Position
Marcus Semien	1	2B
Josh H. Smith	2	3B
Nathaniel Lowe	3	1B
Adolis García	4	RF
Josh Jung	5	3B
Robbie Grossman	6	LF
Jonah Heim	7	C
Brad Miller	8	LF
Ezequiel Duran	9	2B
Jon Gray	–	SP

	Batting Order	Position
Chas McCormick	1	CF
Alex Bregman	2	3B
Yordan Alvarez	3	LF
José Abreu	4	1B
Kyle Tucker	5	RF
Jeremy Peña	6	SS
Corey Julks	7	LF
Mauricio Dubón	8	CF
Martín Maldonado	9	C
Hunter Brown	–	SP

Straight Up/Over-Under/ Runline Record

Texas Rangers: 8-5 SU / OU 8-5 / Runline 7-6

Houston Astros: 6-8 SU / OU 9-5 / Runline 7-7The Rangers head into today’s game in first place in the AL West on a record of 8-5. Over their last five games, they have put together an above .500 record of 4-1. At home, Texas is 6-3 and 2-2 on the road. Their overall series record comes in at 2-2.

• The Rangers have covered the runline in 53.8% of their games and have an average run margin of 1.4
• The Rangers have been favored in 61.5% of their games and have runline records of 5-4 and 2-2 at home and on the road, respectively
• The over has hit in 62% of the Rangers’ 13 games at 8-5.

The Astros head into today’s game vs. the Rangers with an overall record of 6-8. This mark has them sitting 4th in the AL West. Currently, they are 2.5 games out of the division lead. Over their last five games, they are 3-2 and have a road and home record of 3-3 and 3-5, respectively. Houston’s overall series record sits at 1-2.

• The Astros have covered the runline in 50.0% of their games and have an average run margin of 0.6
• The Astros have been favored in 85.7% of their games and have runline records of 3-5 and 4-2 at home and on the road, respectively
• The over has hit in 64% of the Astros’ 14 games at 9-5.

Pitching Matchup

 

The Rangers will turn to starter Jon Gray who has an overall record of 1-1. Through two appearances his ERA stands at 3.00 with a K/9 figure of 0.9. So far, he has put together of FIP of 6.05 to go along with an OBP of .312.

In Jon Gray’s previous game, he allowed two runs and six hits against the Cubs. Gray added a win to his resume as the Rangers won by a score of 8-2.

 

The Astros will turn to starter Hunter Brown who has an overall record of 1-0. Through two appearances his ERA stands at 3.09 with a K/9 figure of 1.0. So far, he has put together of FIP of 2.86 to go along with an OBP of .304.

The last time Hunter Brown took to the mound, he secured a quality start and a win for his team, who won by a final score of 5-1 against the Twins. Brown gave up one run and two hits across seven innings.

Rangers vs. Astros Offense Outlook

After 13 games, the Rangers are ranked 6th in the league with an average of 5.6 runs per game. Texas ranks 17th in home runs (15) while their overall batting average is .247. On the road, they have a BA of .215 and .250 at home.

Texas Rangers Top Hitters On The Road

 

Texas Rangers Top Hitters: Last Five Games

 

At 4.9 runs per game, Houston is ranked 10th in the league in terms of runs scored this season. In terms of home runs, they have gone deep 16 times so far. The team’s batting average of .251 places them 12th in the league. When playing on the road, their batting average is ranked 6th compared to 15th at home.

Houston Astros Top Bats

 

Houston Astros Top Hitters: Last Five Games

 

Free MLB Pick

Both starting pitchers have delivered strong performances so far this season. Jon Gray of the Rangers has allowed only two runs in each of his starts, nearly achieving two quality starts. His track record against the Astros is impressive, as he has limited the current roster to a .200 average in 40 at-bats. On the other hand, Hunter Brown of the Astros had a rough opener against the Tigers, giving up four runs on six hits in just 4 2/3 innings pitched. However, he bounced back big time in his next start, limiting the Twins to one run (0 earned) across seven innings, while striking out seven. Brown’s only start against the Rangers resulted in a 1-0 victory for Houston, as he shut them out over six innings in what was his first MLB start. Notably, the last four games in this series have gone under the total, and I believe this trend will continue tonight. My recommendation is to take the Under 8 at -120. Note: If you bet on baseball, you really need to know what dimelines are! Otherwise, you’re at a major disadvantage!