This Sunday the (63-81) Texas Rangers and the (80-64) Tampa Bay Rays will play the final game of this three-game series. The first pitch will be thrown out at 1:10 PM EST inside Tropicana Field. The last time these two teams faced off, they split a four-game series.
The Texas Rangers are coming into this one after splitting a short two-game series with the Oakland Athletics. The Rangers struggled on the mound in both of those games, as they surrendered 15 combined runs to the A's. Their starting pitcher has to be better if they want to challenge the Rays on the road.
The Tampa Bay Rays are entering this one after losing a five-game series to the Toronto Blue Jays. The Rays struggled at the plate in their three losses, as they will have to make more contact with the ball if they want to take care of business at home.
This game was written/published before last night' ;s results.
The Texas Rangers are currently 4-6 in their last 10, as they have continued to slide in the wrong direction. They are now 18.0 games back from the Tampa Bay Rays for the third and final AL Wild Card spot. The Rangers are also still in third place in the AL West, as they trail the first-place Houston Astros by 31.5 games.
At the plate, the Rangers are scoring 4.56 runs per game and they are hitting .243 as a team. This is the 11th most runs scored per game and the 14th highest overall team batting average, as they have consistently made contact with the ball this season and they have shown up when they have men in scoring position. Texas has also realized that they have some serious power littered throughout their lineup. They are hitting 1.25 bombs per game, which is the eighth most in the entire league. Watch for Corey Seager at the dish, as he leads the team with 30 home runs hit this season. I also expect the Rang ers to stay aggressive once they have reached base safely. They have already stolen 119 bases this season, which is the most in the MLB. They have a ton of speed inside of their lineup.
According to MLB.com, the Rangers will be starting Glenn Otto on the mound. He is currently 6-8 with a 4.71 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. The last time he was on the mound he pitched for 6.0 innings, but he only gave up three hits and two earned runs. Otto is also 2-4 with a 3.68 on the road this season. The Rangers bullpen has also shown up as of late, as they currently have the 11th lowest bullpen ERA in the league. They are only allowing 3.68 runs per game. As a team, the Rangers are allowing 4.67 runs per game, which is the 21st most.