Texas Rangers vs Houston Astros Betting Pick & Prediction 4/14/24

The Rangers and Astros are set to face off in an AL West matchup at 2:10 PM ET on Sunday. This one is being played at Minute Maid Park in Houston and features a Rangers club that is 8-7 compared to the Astros at 5-11. Texas is sending Nathan Eovaldi to the mound, and he is facing off against Cristian Javier for the Astros.

Currently, the Astros are the slight favorite on the money line at -121, and the over/under line is at 8.5 runs. If you’re looking to watch this game on TV, it is being carried by FOX Sports Southwest.

HOUSTON ASTROS VS TEXAS RANGERS BETTING PICK

The Pick: Houston Astros Moneyline -121

This game will be played at Minute Maid Park at 2:10 ET on Sunday, April 14th.

HOW TO BET THE RANGERS VS ASTROS:

• We have the Astros winning by a score of 5 to 4
• If you’re looking for a run line pick, we also like the Astros to cover
• As for an over/under pick, we have this game finishing with 9 runs and like the over

Houston cruised to a 9-2 win over the Rangers in the most recent game of this series. The Astros had a huge 7th inning, scoring seven of their nine runs. As for the Rangers, they scored their only two runs in the 4th. Heading into the game, the Astros were favored at -137 on the money line.

Ronel Blanco got the win for the Astros, going six innings and giving up just two earned runs. He finished the game with five strikeouts but issued three walks. On the other side, Andrew Heaney only went 3 2/3 innings for the Rangers, giving up two earned runs on four hits.

Jose Altuve and Kyle Tucker each had two RBIs for the Astros’ offense. Altuve, Yordan Alvarez, and Jon Singleton each scored two runs for Houston’s lineup.

Rangers Records & Stats

Texas currently leads the AL West on overall record, as they are just above .500 at 8-7. Coming into today’s game vs. the Astros, the Rangers hold a half-game lead over the Angels. So far, the Rangers have gone just 4-5 against their divisional opponents.

At home, the Rangers have been just above .500 at 5-5, and they are just above .500 on the road at 3-2. Texas is coming off a series win, taking the final game vs. the Astros. This season, the Rangers are 3-5 as the favorite and 5-2 as the underdog.

When the Texas Rangers are on the road, they have been a solid bet on the run line, posting a 7-8 record. Their average run differential in road games is +0.6, and they are 3-2 against the run line in those contests. They have been a better bet on the run line as the underdog, going 5-2, compared to 2-6 as the favorite.

Despite the Texas Rangers’ combined run average of 9.7, today’s over/under line of 8.5 runs is lower than their season average. The Rangers have gone over the total in seven of their 15 games this season, and their last two games both went over the total, with 11 and 20 runs scored, respectively.

Even though Nathan Eovaldi has yet to pick up a loss this season, he has only picked up 1 win in his 3 starts. He is coming off of a no-decision in his last start, where he went 5 2/3 innings and gave up 1 earned run and 3 total runs. He has struck out 8 batters in each of his first 2 starts.

When looking at the Rangers’ player projections for today, we have Corey Seager leading the way in terms of total hits, as his projection is 18th best in the league. Marcus Semien is right behind him in terms of total hits, as his projection is 21st best in the league. In terms of home run projections, we have Adolis García with the best odds to hit a home run for the Rangers, as his projection is 2nd best in the league today. Corey Seager is 3rd in terms of home run projections in today’s league slate.

Astros Records & Stats

The Astros are currently in 5th place in the AL West heading into today’s game vs. the Rangers. They will also look to pick up a win at home, as they are just 3-6 at home this season. Overall, they are 5-11 and have lost two straight games.

Houston finally got a win in their most recent game vs. the Rangers. This came after dropping four straight spanning between their series with the Royals and Rangers. So far, they have been the underdog in two games and have gone 2-0 in those matchups.

When the Astros win, they win big, with an average run margin of 6.4 runs per game. When they lose, they lose by an average of 4.4 runs per game. They have a run line record of 5-11, with a 3-6 mark at home and a 2-5 mark on the road. They are 2-0 against the run line as underdogs and 3-11 as favorites. They are currently on a two-game run line win streak as underdogs.

So far this season, 81.2% of the Astros’ games have had higher over/under lines than today’s 8.5-run line. Their games have averaged 10.0 runs per game, and their over/under record is 7-8. Their last four games have gone over the total, with the most recent game against the Rangers totaling 15 runs.

After getting the win in his first start of the season, Cristian Javier has put together a pair of no-decisions. He went 6 innings in his first outing and then went 5 1/3 in his last start, giving up 3 runs. He has 12 strikeouts in 11 1/3 innings of work. Javier is at home today against the Rangers.

Our model has Jose Altuve as the top hitter for the Astros today, with his total hits projection ranking 5th in the league. Yordan Alvarez is our pick to hit a home run for Houston, as his home run projection is 4th best in the league today. José Abreu has the 13th best total hits projection in the league and the 8th best home run projection.