Texas Rangers vs Houston Astros Prediction, 9/1/2020 MLB Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Texas Rangers vs Houston Astros

Date: Tuesday, September 1, 2020

Location: Minute Maid Park in Houston, TX

TV: ATSW

Odds/Point Spread: Rangers (+139) Astros (-150)

Jose Altuve and the Houston Astros (19-14, 2nd in AL West) play the Texas Rangers (12-21, 4th in AL West) at Minute Maid Park on Tuesday. The Astros open this contest at -150 while the Rangers are coming in at +139. The over/under opens at 9.5. The starting pitchers will be Jordan Lyles and Framber Valdez.

Key Texas Rangers Injuries

8/30/2020 Joe Palumbo RP Abdomen Expected to be out until at least Sep 10
8/30/2020 Rougned Odor 2B Eye Expected to be out until at least Sep 1
8/28/2020 Danny Santana 1B Elbow Expected to be out until at least Sep 8
8/28/2020 Brett Martin RP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Sep 11
8/24/2020 Jesse Chavez RP Toe Expected to be out until at least Sep 8
8/20/2020 Elvis Andrus SS Back Expected to be out until at least Sep 1
8/20/2020 Willie Calhoun DH Hamstring Expected to be out until at least Sep 10
8/13/2020 Edinson Volquez RP Oblique Out for the season
7/30/2020 Jose Leclerc RP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Sep 19
7/28/2020 Corey Kluber SP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Sep 15
6/28/2020 Brock Burke SP Shoulder Out for the season

Key Houston Astros Injuries

8/29/2020 Zack Greinke SP Neck Expected to be out until at least Sep 4
8/28/2020 Jose Urquidy SP Undisclosed Expected to be out until at least Sep 5
8/25/2020 Chris Devenski RP Arm Expected to be out until at least Sep 2
8/25/2020 Brad Peacock SP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Sep 2
8/24/2020 Alex Bregman 3B Hamstring Expected to be out until at least Sep 12
8/23/2020 Yordan Alvarez DH Knee Out for the season
8/22/2020 Josh James RP Hip Expected to be out until at least Sep 1
8/16/2020 Rogelio Armenteros RP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Sep 1
8/12/2020 Roberto Osuna RP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Sep 20
8/7/2020 Austin Pruitt RP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Sep 15
7/26/2020 Justin Verlander SP Forearm Expected to be out until at least Sep 15

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Rangers have a 12-21 overall record this season. Lyles (44-63 career win-loss record) sits with a FIP of 4.64 while facing 4,128 opposing batters in the majors. His earned run average is 5.21 (541 earned runs allowed) and his WHIP is 1.448. He has allowed 1,024 base knocks (9.9 hits per nine innings) with 328 walks. Lyles has taken the mound for 934 frames and has 712 punchouts thus far in his career. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.99 and they have given up 104 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .190 against the bullpen and they've struck out 140 hitters and walked 73 batters. As a team, Texas allows 8.2 hits per nine innings while striking out 9.3 batters per nine innings. They are 25th in the league in team earned run average at 5.14. The Rangers pitchers collectively have given up 262 base hits and 165 earned runs. They have allowed 44 home runs this season, ranking them 14th in the league. Texas as a pitching staff has walked 142 batters and struck out 299. They have walked 4.4 men per 9 innings while striking out 9.3 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.40 and their FIP as a unit is 4.65.

Related: Get MLB tips & picks on all of today's games

Hitting Statistics

As a team Texas is hitting .213, good for 29th in the league. The Rangers hold a .345 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .292, which is good for 29th in baseball. They rank 28th in MLB with 6.9 hits per game. Joey Gallo is hitting .183 with an on-base percentage of .336. He has 19 hits this season in 104 at bats with 16 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .423 and an OPS+ of 107. Shin-Soo Choo is hitting .218 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .300. He has totaled 19 hits and he has driven in 13 men in 87 at bats. His OPS+ is 79 while his slugging percentage is at .356. The Rangers have 228 hits, including 49 doubles and 27 home runs. Texas has walked 105 times so far this season and they have struck out 280 times as a unit. They have left 211 men on base and have a team OPS of .636. They score 3.64 runs per contest and have scored a total of 120 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

Valdez (11-10 win-loss mark in his career) has a 4.01 ERA while surrendering 8.0 hits per nine innings. He has a strikeout to walk ratio of 1.84 and he has faced 637 opposing hitters so far in his pro baseball career. During his MLB career, Valdez has conceded 129 base hits while tallying 142 punchouts in 146 innings. He has allowed 65 ER's while holding a WHIP of 1.411 and being the owner of a FIP of 4.3. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.30 and they have given up 124 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .216 against the Astros bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 132 batters and walked 75 opposing hitters. As a team, Houston allows 8 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.8 batters per nine innings. They are 10th in the league in team earned run average at 4.21. The Astros pitchers as a team have surrendered 263 base knocks and 138 earned runs this season. They have given up 38 home runs this year, which ranks 25th in Major League Baseball. Houston as a staff has walked 137 hitters and struck out 288 batters. They give up a walk 4.2 times per 9 innings while they strike out 8.8 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.35 while their FIP as a staff is 4.41.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .250, good for 14th in the league. The Astros hold a .427 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .331, which is good for 10th in baseball. They rank 13th in MLB with 8.4 hits per contest. Jose Altuve comes into this matchup batting .211 with an OBP of .276. He has 28 hits this year along with 12 RBI in 133 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .316 with an OPS+ of 58. George Springer is hitting .209 this season and he has an OBP of .339. He has collected 19 hits in 91 at bats while driving in 17 runs. He has an OPS+ of 101 and a slugging percentage of .418. The Astros as a unit have 277 base hits, including 65 doubles and 38 homers. Houston has walked 124 times this year and they have struck out on 249 occasions. They have had 216 men left on base and have an OPS of .758. They have scored 5.33 runs per game and totaled 176 runs this season.

Who will win tonight's Rangers/Astros MLB game against the spread?

Josh's Pick: Take the Astros (-150)

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