Texas Rangers vs Tampa Bay Rays Prediction, 10/4/2023 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Texas Rangers vs Tampa Bay Rays

Date: Wednesday, October 4, 2023

Location: Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, FL

TV: ABC

Odds/Point Spread: Texas (+132) Tampa Bay (-156)

Tropicana Field is where the Tampa Bay Rays (99-63) will take on the Texas Rangers (90-72) on Wednesday in Game 2 of their series. The line on this matchup has Texas at +132 and Tampa Bay is coming in at -156. The over/under is 8. The starting pitchers are Nathan Eovaldi and Zach Eflin.

As a unit, the Texas Rangers are notching 5.4 runs per outing, which ranks them 3rd in MLB. They have 881 runs and have an on-base percentage of .337. The Rangers have tallied 326 doubles as a unit and have smacked 233 baseballs out of the park. They have tallied 845 runs batted in and 1,470 hits on the campaign, and their average at the plate comes in at .263. Texas owns a slugging percentage of .452 and have struck out 1,416 times, while drawing a walk on 599 occasions.

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They have earned a strikeout to walk ratio of 2.75 and their pitching staff holds a collective WHIP of 1.27. Rangers pitchers have yielded 198 home runs and 716 runs in total (14th in baseball). Texas has surrendered 1,330 base hits (8.3 per 9 innings) as well as 683 earned runs. The Rangers have an ERA of 4.28 for the season (18th in the league), and their staff has struck out 1,351 batters. They have walked 491 opposing batters and their FIP sits at 4.32 as a team for the year.

Rangers relief pitchers have stepped onto the hill with players on base 163 times in addition to having 160 appearances in high leverage situations. The relief pitchers have a total of 80 holds for the year (20th in the league). The Rangers relief pitchers have a save percentage of 47.6% and has stepped onto the mound in 146 save situations. They have compiled 30 saves over the course of the season and have missed out on 33 out of their 63 save opportunities. The bullpen pitchers have inherited 273 base runners over the course of the season and 31.5% of them crossed the plate. The Rangers have dispatched 467 relief pitchers to the mound this season.

The Texas Rangers have 4,309 putouts on the year, as well as 1,423 assists and 57 errors. Their fielding rate sits at .990 which is 2nd in pro baseball, and they have twisted 143 double plays. The Rangers have transformed 70.3% of baseballs in play into outs in their 12,927 innings on the field, which has them sitting 4th in the majors.

Eovaldi has taken the ball for 1,401 frames and has tallied 1,192 K's during his pro baseball career. Eovaldi (79-73 career record) holds a FIP of 3.83 while he has gone up against 5,932 batters during his time in the majors. His earned run average is 4.10 (639 ER's allowed) and his WHIP is 1.303. He has conceded 1,424 base knocks (9.1 hits per 9 innings) and has had 403 free passes.

The Tampa Bay Rays hold a team on-base percentage of .331 and a team batting average of .260 so far this season. They have struck out on 1,420 occasions (13th in MLB) and have earned 1,432 base hits. Tampa Bay has 230 home runs over the course of the season as well as 827 RBIs. The Rays have a team slugging percentage of .445 and they are scoring 5.31 runs per game (4th in MLB). They have recorded 282 doubles, while walking 514 times as well as recording 860 runs.

The Rays have a team WHIP of 1.178 and have a FIP of 3.81 as a pitching staff over the course of the season. Their K/BB ratio sits at 9.40 (1,507 strikeouts vs 439 bases on balls). They sit at 2nd in baseball as a staff in total hits given up with 1,259. They have given up 177 HR's and they allow 4.15 runs per 9 innings (5th in MLB). The Tampa Bay pitching staff have relinquished 665 runs this season while holding a team ERA of 3.86 (619 earned runs yielded).

Tampa Bay bullpen pitchers hold an inherited score rate of 28.4% out of their 183 inherited runners. Their relievers have taken the field 163 times in high leverage situations and on 121 occasions with runners on base. With 155 save situations, the Rays have earned 78 holds and 31 blown saves. They are ranked 20th in the league with a save percentage of 59.2%, and they have sent 536 relievers to the mound on the campaign. Tampa Bay has called on bullpen pitchers to step onto the mound in 76 save chances and they have earned 45 saves.

In their 12,978 innings played, the Rays have accumulated a defensive efficiency of 70.3% (5th in MLB). The Tampa Bay Rays have turned 114 double plays and have notched a fielding percentage of .987 (9th in pro baseball). The Rays have accrued 1,401 assists, 74 errors and have earned 4,326 putouts so far this season.

Eflin (52-53 career record) has a 4.28 earned run average and has conceded 9.2 hits per 9 innings. He has a K/BB ratio of 4.01 and he has gone up against 3,508 hitters so far in his career. He has surrendered 398 ER's while earning a WHIP of 1.238 and a FIP of 4.1. In his pro baseball career, Eflin has surrendered 852 base hits and he has 738 strikeouts in 837 frames.

Who will win tonight's MLB game against the spread or moneyline?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Texas (+132)

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