Wandy Rodriguez (1-1, 2.70 ERA) and Bruce Chen (0-1, 13.50 ERA) are on the hill in the first of a three-game series between the Texas Rangers (15-20) and the Cleveland Indians (12-21) at Globe Life Park in Arlington. Action begins at 8:05 p.m. ET on Friday, May. 15 and can be seen on STO, FSN-SW and MLB Net.
Rodriguez pitched 6.0 innings in his last outing, surrendering one run, striking out six and walking one in a 2-1 defeat to the Rays. Shin-Soo Choo (.243, 11 Rs, 5 HRs, 16 RBIs) continued his strong play yesterday, going 3 for 4. Chen is 2-3 with an 8.45 ERA against the Rangers in his career. He takes on a below-average Texas offense that’s batting just .233. Jason Kipnis (.316, 19 Rs, 3 HRs, 15 RBIs, 5 SBs) has been successful at the plate, going 2 for 4 yesterday.
Texas is a -116 favorite against Cleveland and the Over/Under (O/U) for this game is sitting at nine runs. Though the Rangers have had a solid season in terms of their overall money line (+81), they’ve done poorly as a favorite with a record of 1-2.
Over in the other dugout, Cleveland is coming in with an overall money line of -1,233 and a disappointing record of 4-7 as the underdog. Cleveland is excellent at not striking out with just 6.4 per game, ranking second in the AL. Cleveland’s pitching staff is one of the top in the AL at pitching on the road, with a 3.86 ERA. The Indians have established a reputation of overwhelming hitters with an AL-best 9.7 strikeouts per game.
The Rangers have a 5-7 record against left-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Chen takes the mound. Rodriguez (LHP) will be on the hill against the Indians, who have inferior records against left-handed starting pitchers on the road and overall of 1-4 and 3-9, respectively.
Predictions: SU Winner – TEX, O/U – Over
Notes
When leading after 7 innings, Texas is 7-12, while Cleveland is 4-9.
The Rangers are coming into this game after allowing one walk during their last outing. The Indians have a 2-0 record when opponents give up that many walks or fewer.
When they are outhit, the Indians are 2-16. The Rangers have a 3-15 record when opponents outhit them.
Tied at 14th for total home runs, Texas and Cleveland have each hit 31 homers this season.
Ranking 11th, Texas is in the top half of the league in hits, notching 7.94 per game. Cleveland ranks in the top 10 at ninth with 8.44.
Ranking 23rd, Texas is near the bottom of the league for its on-base plus slugging percentage (.681). Cleveland ranks in the top half at 11th with an OPS of .719.
The Indians are 9-16 when they allow at least one home run. The Rangers perform similarly when they allow one or more homers with a 6-16 record.
