As the MLB season hits the home stretch of September, the Wild Card race for the MLB Postseason only becomes more intriguing. Tonight, the red-hot Texas Rangers (72-67) ride a six-game winning streak into the desert for a meeting with the Arizona Diamondbacks (68-71) as these two Wild Card hopefuls duke it out.
Here’s a Diamondbacks vs. Rangers prediction and pick on DraftKings Sportsbook for Tuesday’s game.
Diamondbacks vs. Rangers prediction, preview
These teams both find themselves in the Wild Card picture, but the odds of each making it into the final postseason field continue to draw further apart. The Rangers looked like they might be dead in the water following a season-ending injury to ace Nathan Eovaldi but have now rattled off six straight wins with just 1.5 games between themselves and a potential playoff berth. Meanwhile, the Diamondbacks have now lost two in a row with 6.5 games to go for a Wild Card spot — they just keep watching their postseason dreams dissipate slowly like desert sand between their fingers.
At 9-1 across their last 10 contests, Texas brings one of baseball’s hottest offenses to the table tonight. They’ve scored 88 runs across that sample, second-most in baseball, and their .285 team average ranks second with the third-best OPS at .856. It’s a bit of a shocking hot streak considering how lifeless this same offense appeared for most of the season thus far, but 25 homers in a 13-game stretch will certainly raise the ceiling, as will a .351 OBP. After a brief slump from the pitching staff, the arms are also rebounding with a 3.34 ERA and 1.02 WHIP over the same sample, the fifth and second-best marks in the MLB. Even without Eovaldi, they have what it takes to maintain a top-tier stable of hurlers.
Arizona doesn’t boast that same luxury. They’re 24th in ERA and WHIP over the full season, though the staff has recorded a 3.79 ERA over their last 15 days, a top-10 ranking in the category. They’re 5-5 over their last 10 games, which includes a series win over the Brewers and Dodgers, but plenty of things have to go right for the Diamondbacks to have a shot at the postseason. Their pitchers must keep performing at their current level, while the offense can’t afford to cool down either. They rank ninth in scoring over the last two weeks with 66 runs, but they’ll also need to improve on a .715 OPS and .243 average which rank 19th and 20th. In good news, the Diamondbacks have bashed 17 homers, which falls 10th in the sport. They’ve also struck out more than all but one team though, so they’ll need to clean up the vision, too.
Diamondbacks vs. Rangers pick, best bet
DraftKings Sportsbook lists this matchup as a toss-up. The Rangers and Diamondbacks both come in with -110 odds on the Moneyline, though Texas is favored on the run line. The total sits at 9.5 runs.
The Diamondbacks trot out Nabil Crismatt (1.84 ERA, 1.36 WHIP 11 SO), a veteran with just 14.2 innings in three appearances at the MLB level to his name this season. The Rangers haven’t yet announced a starter, though it looks like lefty Jacob Latz (3.13 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 61 SO) may be the name in line.
At the moment, it looks like keeping it simple may be the move for tonight’s betting card. The Rangers are very hot right now, and while the Diamondbacks did come out with a couple of impressive series wins recently, Texas does have the upper hand with their momentum. They also beat the D-Backs 7-5 last night in an extra-innings affair, though the offenses performed at a comparable level with eight hits for the Rangers compared to seven for the Diamondbacks. This may be another close one, but the vibes feel right for Texas to continue their hot streak with another big win tonight as they close the gap in the Wild Card race.
Best bet: TEX Rangers ML (-110)
Click the odds on this bet to tail!
