The Pittsburgh Pirates and the Texas Rangers meet Thursday in MLB action from Globe Life Park. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Texas Rangers vs Pittsburgh Pirates Prediction.
Starting Pitching Matchup
The Pittsburgh Pirates will send out Luis Ortiz for the start here and Ortiz is 5-3 with a 3.41 ERA and 71 strikeouts this season. This will be Ortiz’s second career start against the Rangers. The Texas Rangers did not have a starting pitcher announced at the time that this article was posted.
Pittsburgh Pirates Recap
The Pittsburgh Pirates will be looking to bounce back after failing to complete the sweep of the Seattle Mariners thanks to a 10-3 loss in Sunday’s series finale. The Pirates still won the series, snapping their series losing skid which included the Padres and Dodgers over the last two weeks.
Pirates Trying To Get Out Of NL Central Basement
Bryan Reynolds leads the Pirates with 134 hits with 23 doubles along with 19 home runs and 69 RBIs while Andrew McCutchen has 16 home runs and Jack Suwinski has 9 stolen bases. Oneil Cruz has 13 stolen bases and 145 strikeouts while also posting 27 doubles, 18 home runs and 61 RBIs and Connor Joe has a .233 batting average and 19 doubles as well this season. Ke’Bryan Hayes also has 11 stolen bases as well this season.
Why the Pittsburgh Pirates will win
- The Rangers have lost each of their last six night games against National League opponents following a home win.
- The Pirates have won each of their last five road games against teams that held a losing record.
- The Pirates have covered the run line in each of their last eight road games against American League opponents.
- The Rangers have failed to cover the run line in each of their last six night games against National League opponents following a home win.
Texas Rangers Recap
The Texas Rangers come into this set after falling short in the series against the Minnesota Twins, but the Rangers avoided the sweep after a 6-5 win in Sunday’s series finale. The loss in the four-game set added to Texas’ series losing streak which includes sets against the Red Sox, Yankees and Astros as well over the last two weeks.
Rangers Trying To Stay Alive In AL Playoff Hunt
Marcus Semien leads the Rangers with 123 hits along with 23 doubles, 18 home runs and 61 RBIs while Adolis Garcia has 21 home runs and 62 RBIs with 19 doubles as well as 10 stolen bases. Jonah Heim has 11 homers and 49 RBIs and Josh Smith also has a team-high 23 doubles. Corey Seager also has 26 home runs with 64 RBIs of his own this season.
Why the Texas Rangers will win
- The Pirates have lost each of their last seven road games.
- The Rangers have won each of their last six home games against teams that held a losing record.
- The Pirates have failed to cover the run line in nine of their last 10 games against AL West opponents that held a losing record.
- The Rangers have covered the run line in three of their last four games against National League opponents that held a losing record.
Texas Rangers vs Pittsburgh Pirates Prediction
I’m on the Rangers here. I don’t love the form of either one of these teams. However, the Rangers have played some tough customers as of late and I think there’s a greater sense of urgency for Texas because they’re the defending World Series champions. Pittsburgh also just faced the Mariners, who have slipped up offensively in a lot of recent games, and then the Pirates gave up 10 runs in Sunday’s finale. All in all I just trust Texas’ lineup more in terms of production at the plate and I think they get the win in Monday’s opener. Give me Texas here.