Will Phillies Keep Rolling Against Champion Rangers?
Rangers vs. Phillies Preview with Pick
The Texas Rangers will begin a three-game series on the road against the Philadelphia Phillies. Despite winning the World Series last season, the Rangers are just 24-24 on the year and currently 1.5 games out of the AL West.
On the other hand, the Phillies not only lead the NL East in wins but also the entire MLB in wins, with a 34-14 record. They’ve won a league-best 70.8% of games. No other team in baseball has won more than 70% of games this season.
That said, the Rangers and Phillies should provide us with an exciting pitching duel. Texas will roll with Jon Gray, who is 2-1 with a 2.08 ERA on the season. On the other hand, the Phillies will throw Ranger Suarez, who is an NL Cy Young candidate right now. The left-hander is currently 8-0 with a 1.37 ERA.
We’ve got plenty of MLB picks today, including the first game of this series between the Texas Rangers and Philadelphia Phillies.
Our Texas Rangers vs Philadelphia Phillies picks and predictions are below.
Texas Rangers vs Philadelphia Phillies Information & Pick
Texas Rangers vs Philadelphia Phillies
Location of the game: Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA
Date & Time: Tuesday, May 21, 6:40 pm ET
Where to Watch: Bally Sports Southwest, NBCSP
Rangers vs Phillies Picks
- Pick: Phillies -150
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Rangers vs. Phillies Odds
Before we get into an in-depth analysis of the teams and predictions for the contest, the latest MLB Odds:
1Moneyline:
Texas Rangers +138
Philadelphia Phillies -150
2Total:
7.5 runs
3Runline:
Texas Rangers +1.5 (-162)
Philadelphia Phillies -1.5 (+134)
Who will come out on top in what could be a World Series preview? Check out our top free picks and parlays for the MLB slate!
Rangers vs. Phillies Betting Preview
Starting Pitchers
Jon Gray (2-1, 2.08 ERA)
- The Texas Rangers will pitch Jon Gray to open up the series.
- He’s a righty who struck out 23.7% of batters this season.
- The veteran has also held teams to a .106 ISO and wOBA of .277 while inducing 45.3% of ground balls.
Ranger Suarez (8-0, 1.37 ERA)
- He’ll duel Ranger Suarez, one of the league’s most dominant pitchers.
- Suarez has thrown nine games this season and has won eight of them.
- Along with his 1.37 ERA, he has a .76 WHIP and 58 strikeouts in 59 innings of work.
Suarez is one of the major reasons why the Phillies lead the MLB current standings. He’s also one of the reasons why we’re considering Philadelphia when looking at our Texas Rangers vs Philadelphia Phillies picks and predictions.
Team Analysis
Texas Rangers
The Rangers have only won three of their last ten games this season. That’s pushed them to .500, sitting at 24-24.
In addition, Adolis Garcia was scratched from the lineup on Sunday with a right forearm injury. It’s uncertain if he’ll play in Tuesday’s opener against the Phillies.
Therefore, the Rangers won’t be a part of our best MLB bets today.
Philadelphia Phillies
The Phillies have won three consecutive games and are 8-2 in their last ten games.
They’ve done this without SS Trea Turner, who hasn’t played on the baseball field since May 3.
He’s progressing well from his hamstring injury but is still a few weeks from a return.
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The Phillies Match Up Better
The Texas Rangers have struggled against left-handed pitching. Only Marcus Semien and Adolis Garcia are hitting lefties at a high rate this season. Due to the status of Garcia, that essentially means there could be or even eight batters in Texas’ lineup with below-average numbers against lefties from a power and on-base perspective.
Without Garcia, the projected lineup would average below a .100 ISO against lefties. That won’t help going up against Ranger Suarez of the Phillies. Suarez has held teams to a .087 ISO and wOBA of .216.
Some would say it’s a fluke. However, his other stats back up his success. Therefore, it’s no fluke. Suarez has induced 58.8% of grounders and has limited teams to 15.5% of fly balls. He’s also allowed just 20.3% of line drives and has added 26.5% of strikeouts with 4.6% of walks. These stats proved how locked in the potential Cy Young candidate is right now.
Can Rangers score for Gray?
Conversely, the Rangers will throw Jon Gray to begin the series. Gray has also been electric this season. He’s struck out nearly 24% of batters this year and has held teams to a .106 ISO with a wOBA of .277.
In addition, Gray has held walks to 6.5% and has induced 45.3% of grounders while allowing 24.7% of fly balls and 23.3% of line drives. These stats aren’t as good as Suarez’s, but they’re good enough to win ball games.
Unfortunately for Gray, the Rangers aren’t hitting much when he’s on the mound. He’s pitched in 20 games and has just two wins to show for it.
Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Phillies have been much more consistent against right-handed pitching. The projected lineup has six batters with above-average power numbers. It also has five batters with a wOBA of at least .372 against right-handed pitching. While this Phillies lineup has struck out 21.5% of the time against righties, it’s also walked 9.1% of the time.
After all, Gray has struggled to add more strikeouts to lefties and will have to face plenty of really good lefties in the Philadelphia lineup, including Kyle Schwarber, Bryson Stott, Bryce Harper, Kody Clemens, and Brandon Marsh.
Therefore, our Texas Rangers vs Philadelphia Phillies picks and predictions include the Phillies at -150.
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