Trade deadline day has arrived in the MLB, but even with roster shuffling across the sport’s landscape, the action continues on the diamond this evening with an eight-game schedule. The Texas Rangers are coming off a disappointing sweep against a division rival and are trying to bounce back as they head back home tonight to begin this series against the San Francisco Giants, who are selling big on the trade market. First pitch is scheduled for 8:05 p.m. ET in Arlington.
Let’s dive in with a preview, prediction and pick for tonight’s Giants vs. Rangers game courtesy of odds and lines on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Giants vs. Rangers prediction, preview
The Giants haven’t had real expectations for the remainder of the season since early in the campaign. It became clear rather quickly that they’d be outside the postseason picture and wind up selling at the trade deadline; now, they’ve flipped Luis Arraez and Robbie Ray to new teams and remain 47-65 with a run differential of -98. However, the Rangers are still in contention for the AL West at 2.5 games back of the division lead. They’re 55-57 on the season with a -36 run differential and five straight losses though, so things aren’t exactly looking up.
San Francisco is scheduled to send out ace RHP Logan Webb (6-7), barring a stunning last-minute deal. He’s struggled some by his own standards this season with a 3.93 ERA on the year with just 93 strikeouts across 119.0 IP, but he also brings a 1.12 WHIP. The 19.1% K% may be low, but a 6.2% BB% looks good and Webb continues to limit barrels nicely while forcing plenty of ground balls. The Giants’ bullpen ranks 19th in ERA at 4.26 with a 1.40 WHIP and an 8.9% K-BB%.
For Texas, it’s currently unclear who will start tonight. The club is yet to make an announcement and the MLB’s official probable pitchers page says TBD at this time, but Fangraphs projects RHP Cal Quantrill (4-3) as the man on the mound. He’s thrown to the tune of a 3.84 ERA with a 1.24 WHIP and 39 strikeouts over 58.2 IP, primarily operating out of the bullpen this year. A 15.7% K% is low, though a 7.2% BB% is respectable. The Rangers’ relief staff sits 20th in ERA with a 4.32 mark, plus a 1.34 WHIP and an 11.5% K-BB%.
These respective lineups are solid, but largely uninspiring. The Giants slot in with 4.20 runs per game with a .725 OPS that ranks 13th. They’re also 13th in ISO (.162) with 126 homers. Tonight’s matchup is a plus as well, assuming they face a right-hander –San Francisco slashes .255/.313/.425 in the split. The Rangers post only 4.15 runs per outing with a .719 OPS that falls 17th. They’re 15th in ISO (.157) with 129 home runs. And against right-handers, they slash .243/.316/.398 with a .713 OPS, the letter of their splits.
Giants vs. Rangers pick, best bet
DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Rangers as a -125 Moneyline favorite at home, with the Giants listed as +104 underdogs to win outright on the road. The run total sits at eight for this one.
Webb hasn’t been great recently, racking up a high 6.59 ERA in July. However, he’s allowed an average of three earned runs per game in three starts since the All-Star break, and his WHIP since then sits at 0.91. He may have shaken off the poor stretch from earlier in the month, and against a team that struggles to hit right-handers to begin with, he may be positioned for a ceiling game. Texas’ bats have a 25.5% K% since the break with an OBP of just .303, so the hitters may struggle against a talented arm, especially at the pitcher-friendly Globe Life Field. For what it’s worth, the Rangers’ momentum has shifted drastically in the wrong direction in recent days as well, so coming off a five-game losing streak, they’re a bit of a tough club to trust right now anyways. With that said, I like Webb to put together a nice outing of under 9.5 combined hits, walks, and earned runs allowed.
