The Detroit Tigers are set to face the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Park. The game gets underway 2:05 p.m. ET and Fox Sports Southwest will broadcast this AL matchup.
Detroit Tigers vs. Texas Rangers Odds
Detroit (+110) is the underdog to Texas (-120) and Vegas has the Over/Under for this one at 9.5 runs. The odds for wagering on the games total sit at +100 for the under and -120 for the over. The games current runline odds stand at -190 for betting the Tigers +1.5 runs and +165 for the Rangers -1.5 runs.
The Tigers have gone 15-20 SU this year and are 18-16 against the spread (ATS). They’ve lost 3.8 units for bettors taking the moneyline over the early portions of the season and 1.6 units ATS. The Rangers, on the other hand, are 14-24 SU and 15-22 ATS. The teams lost 2.5 units for moneyline bettors and 11.2 units ATS.
Rangers games have an over/under record of 20-15-2 thus far in 2018. Detroit has been a decent under bet with a total record of 14-20.
Southpaw Francisco Liriano is getting the nod for Detroit. Liriano is 3-1 with a 2.97 ERA and 26 strikeouts. He has yet to face the Rangers this year and only made one start against them in 2017 (0-1, 8.22 ERA and five strikeouts over seven and two-third innings).
The Rangers will put the ball in the right hand of Bartolo Colon (1-1, 3.29 ERA), who has 25 punchouts and three walks this season as well as a 0.83 WHIP. Colon only made one start against the Tigers in 2017 (1-0, 1.42 ERA and four strikeouts across 6.1 innings).
Texas pitching staff has given up 5.5 runs per game overall in 2018 as a unit. The clubs starters have an ERA of 5.31, a WHIP of 1.48 and a strikeouts-per-nine of 7.1. The bullpen has a 4.49 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 8.1 K/9.
Texas hitters have produced 4.1 runs per contest, including 4.8 per game over its last 10 games and 3.6 per game over their last five. The team has a slash-line of .204/.259/.377 over its last five games and is 1-4 SU during that stretch.
Right fielder Nomar Mazara and first baseman Joey Gallo have paced the Rangers hitters this year. Mazara is slashing .288/.349/.504 with eight home runs, 24 RBIs and 20 runs scored, and Gallo’s line is .217/.294/.514 with 12 homers, 25 RBIs and 23 runs.
Mazara didn’t do very well against lefties in 2017. Over 133 plate appearances, he slashed .228/.286/.317 (compared to his total season line of .253/.323/.422).
In the visiting dugout, Detroit’s pitching staff allowed 4.6 runs per game and its starters own a 3.90 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 7.17 K/9. The bullpen has logged an ERA of 4.74, along with a K-per-9 of 8.55.
The Tigers offense has slashed .259/.321/.415 on its way to 4.4 runs scored per game in 2018, including 3.6 runs per game over the teams last 10 games and 4.0 per game over the teams last five outings (2-3 SU).
Detroit’s offensive production been powered by third baseman Jeimer Candelario and right fielder Nicholas Castellanos. Candelario is slashing .287/.366/.522 with five home runs, 15 RBIs and 21 runs scored, while Castellanos (.321/.379/.500) is up to three homers, 23 RBIs and 20 runs scored.
Maintaining a slash line of .173/.218/.269 across 55 such plate appearances, Candelario seemed to take a step back when hitting righty pitching on the road in 2017 (compared to his overall season slash line of .283/.359/.425).
The Tigers have lost 1.2 units and are 15-13 ATS when facing a right-handed starting pitcher this year. The over has cashed in nine of those games, compared to 19 that’ve gone under in such games. On the other hand, the Rangers have lost 3.4 units and are 4-7 ATS when facing a lefty starter. The overs hit in seven of those games, compared to three that went under.
Detroit Tigers at Texas Rangers Prediction
Predictions: SU Winner – Rangers, ATS Winner – Tigers, O/U – OVER
Betting Trends
- The over has cashed in five of Texas last seven games.
- Detroit has posted 23.0 Runs + Hits + Errors per game over its last 10 contests and 25.2 over its last five.
- The Tigers have hit eight home runs in their last 10 games, including five over their last five.
