At the beginning of the year, Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander were teammates on the Mets. On Wednesday, they’ll face off against each other in a start that will likely dictate the course of the AL West postseason race. Verlander (10-7, 3.34 ERA) will take the mound for the division leading Astros (79-61), while Scherzer (12-5, 3.55) will look to turn the tide for the struggling Rangers (76-62) after Texas lost the first two games of this series. First pitch from Globe Life Park is scheduled for 8:05 p.m. ET.
The Rangers are -135 moneyline underdogs at DraftKings Sportsbook, while the Astros are +114 underdogs. The total is set at 8.5.
Astros-Rangers picks: Wednesday, September 6
Injury report
Astros
Out: RP Ryne Stanek (right ankle)
Rangers
Out: UTIL Brad Miller (hamstring strain), INF Josh Jung (left thumb fracture)
Starting pitchers
Justin Verlander vs. Max Scherzer
Verlander has a 3.86 ERA in his six starts since being acquired by the Astros, which is a step down for the 3.15 ERA he tallied in his 16 starts for the Mets. Verlander’s coming off a start against the Yankees where he allowed six runs in six innings, and has a 2.64 ERA in 211.1 career innings against the Rangers.
Scherzer enters Wednesday’s start after leaving his last start in the sixth inning due to arm fatigue. Scherzer said that he felt a bit of “tightness” in the start, but said that he wasn’t hurt. After tallying a 4.01 ERA in 107.2 innings for the Mets, he has a 2.21 ERA in his six starts with the Rangers.
Over/Under pick
I love this over. While Scherzer and Verlander are first-ballot Hall of Famers, they’ve also looked their age this year. While I don’t think either of them will blow up and have a horrible outing, I can see them making it through their starts without giving up a couple of runs.
Pick: Over 8.5
Moneyline pick
The Rangers need a win, and bad. They fell out of a postseason spot with their loss yesterday, but could get right back in the picture with a win today.
Pick: Rangers