The Los Angeles Angels will be squaring off against their divisional rival Texas Rangers at Globe Life Park. Fox Sports Southwest will be airing the matchup and the first pitch is scheduled for 8:05 p.m. ET.
Los Angeles Angels vs. Texas Rangers Odds
Vegas is listing Texas (+120) as the underdog to Los Angeles (-130). The total is sitting at 9.5 runs and gamblers can take the over for -105 and the under for -115. Gamblers can also bet on the game’s spread with the current runline odds sitting at +115 for the Angels -1.5 runs and -135 for the Rangers +1.5 runs.
The Angels have gone 8-3 SU this year and are 6-4 against the spread (ATS). They’ve accumulated 4.2 units for gamblers taking the moneyline in this young season and 3.3 units ATS. Los Angeles has covered the spread five times in its last seven games and the total has gone over in four of those seven. The Rangers are 4-8 SU and 4-7 ATS. They’ve lost 1.4 units for moneyline bettors and 5.1 units ATS. Texas has a 3-4 ATS record over its last seven outings and the under has hit in four of those seven.
Rangers games have an over/under record of 4-6-1 so far in 2018. Los Angeles has an over/under record of 6-4.
The Angels have gained 1.0 units and are 0-1 ATS when facing a lefty starter this season. The over has hit in zero of those games, compared to one that’ve gone under against left-handed starting pitchers. On the other hand, the Rangers have lost 0.3 units and are 1-2 ATS when facing a lefty starter. The over has hit in one of those games, compared to two that went under the total.
Tyler Skaggs (1-0, 1.64 ERA) will get the nod for the visiting Angels. The left-handed Skaggs started 16 games last year while finishing the season 2-6 overall with a 4.55 ERA and a 1.39 WHIP. He made four starts against Texas in 2017 and put together a 0-1 record against the Rangers with a 7.79 ERA and 16 strikeouts.
The Rangers are going with lefty Martin Perez (1-0, 5.06 ERA) as their starter. Perez started 32 games last year and finished the season 13-12 overall with a 4.82 ERA and a 1.54 WHIP. He recorded three starts against the Angels a year ago and put up a 2-1 record with a 3.38 ERA and eight strikeouts.
Texas’ pitchers have allowed 4.9 runs per game overall in 2018 as a unit. The club’s starters have an ERA of 4.73, a WHIP of 1.54 and a strikeouts-per-nine of 9.2. The bullpen has a 4.02 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 9.0 K/9. In nine games against divisional opponents, Rangers starters have an ERA of 4.06 and the bullpen’s ERA is 4.93.
The Texas hitters are putting up 3.4 runs per outing, including 3.0 per game against divisional foes and 4.6 per game over their last five. The team’s hit .277/.352/.416 over its last five games and is 2-3 SU during that stretch.
Elvis Andrus and Shin-soo Choo have led the Rangers’ hitters so far. Andrus is hitting .362/.423/.553 with 17 hits, five RBIs and seven runs scored, while Choo’s line is .295/.367/.568 with 13 hits, six RBIs and six runs.
Choo did not perform especially well against lefties at home last season. Across 69 such plate appearances, he slashed .254/.362/.305 (compared to his total season line of .261/.357/.423).
In the other dugout, Los Angeles’ pitchers have allowed 4.0 runs per game and its starting pitchers own a 4.75 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 9.34 K/9. The bullpen has managed an excellent ERA of just 2.63, along with a K-per-9 of 8.77.
The Angels offense has slashed .270/.325/.464 on its way to 6.2 runs scored per game in 2018, including over the team’s last five outings (4-1 SU).
Los Angeles’ hitters have been led by Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout. Ohtani is slashing .389/.421/.889 with seven hits, seven RBIs and four runs scored, while Trout has a .222 average with 10 hits, three homers, eight RBIs and nine runs scored.
Trout taken a step back when hitting lefties last year, putting up a slash line of .280/.443/.463 across 106 plate appearances (compared to his total season line of .306/.442/.629).
Los Angeles Angels at Texas Rangers MLB Tip
Predictions: SU Winner – Angels, ATS Winner – Angels, O/U – OVER
Notes
Betting Notes
The Angels have won five of their last six games SU while the Rangers have lost three of their last four SU.
Los Angeles has posted 25.7 Runs + Hits + Errors per game over its last 10 outings and 25.4 over its last five.
The Angels have hit 15 home runs in their last 10 games, including nine over their last five.
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