The Texas Rangers (60-79, 78-61 RL, 67-66-6 O/U) battle the Miami Marlins (57-82, 64-75 RL, 61-74-5 O/U) in game two of Monday’s doubleheader. The Rangers will have Jon Gray on the hill. The Marlins will reply with Braxton Garret, seeking his first home win. The Rangers won the only meeting this season by an 8-0 score.
Jon Gray will return from the IL and start in game two. Gray last pitched on August 1st and struggled, allowing four runs (three earned) in only 1.1 innings, and was tagged with the loss to dip to 7-6. The veteran right-hander has been one of the Rangers' best starters, posting a 3.83 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP in 103.1 innings of action. Gray completed six shutout innings against the Marlins in an 8-0 win in July and is 4-3 with a 3.67 ERA in 49 career innings against the fish.
The Rangers are having another disastrous season due to the pitching. It’s been an ugly string of games as they only have two wins so far this month. They lost two of three to the Blue Jays this past weekend and are 2-8 in their last ten games overall.
Nathaniel Lowe continues to shine at the plate, recording a strong .995 OPS so far this month. The 27-year-old second baseman i s having a productive season, launching 24 homers with 69 RBIs and an .866 OPS. Lowe is 1 for 5 against the Marlins this season.
The Rangers are scoring an average of 4.45 runs per game, ranking them 13th overall. The pitching staff enters with a 4.15 team ERA, placing them 21st in the big leagues.