Can The Defending World Series Champs Close Out Rivals?

The Rangers Need to Remain Perfect On the Road to Keep Title Hopes Alive

Those people planning to celebrate the Houston Astros‘ exit from the 2023 MLB playoffs are mighty disappointed right now. A stunning comeback has the defending World Series champion one win away from returning to the Fall Classic with the Rangers vs Astros odds favoring the host Astros in Game 6.

Jose Altuve’s three-run home run in the top of the ninth inning gave Houston the 5-4 lead. The Rangers had two runners on with nobody out in the bottom of the ninth inning, but failed to come up with either the tying or winning run.

There will be a rematch of the Game 2 starting pitchers with Nathan Eovaldi going for the Rangers and Framber Valdez getting the start for Houston.

When looking at the MLB lines the Astros are priced at -118 to close things out in Game 6 with the Rangers coming in with +108 odds.

The MLB team stats show that the Astros and Rangers rank first and second in the postseason in slugging percentage with runners in scoring position.

The Rangers went from even odds to +335 to win the series after the Game 5 loss. The Astros are now priced at +435 to win the series.

The Astros (EV) now have the best odds to win the World Series after being priced at +700. The Rangers saw their odds to win the World Series move from +110 to +700 after dropping three straight home games.

Rangers Look To Stay Alive

The Texas Rangers realize that they should be headed to Houston needing just one win to punch a ticket to the franchise’s first World Series since 2011. Instead, Texas needs to win both Games 6 and 7 to win the series.

The good news is there is nobody the Rangers would rather have pitching in Game 6 than Eovaldi.

He is 3-0 in this MLB postseason with a 2.29 ERA and 24 strikeouts in 19.2 innings in three starts. During the regular season, he was 5-3 with a 3.86 ERA following a Texas loss. He won Game 2 after allowing five hits and three runs in six innings. That could play a role in the Rangers vs Astros odds.

The total has gone over in five of the last seven games when the Rangers play in Houston.

No Way, Jose

Jose Altuve didn’t get the ball out of the infield in his first three at-bats in Game 5 and headed into the ninth inning 0-for-4 and on the verge of being hitless for the third time in the American League Championship Series.

That all changed with one swing of the bat in the ninth inning as his three-run home run erased a two-run lead by the Rangers.

In 13 elimination games dating back to the 2017 postseason, Altuve is batting .340 with nine runs, three home runs and 11 RBIs.

The total has gone over in six of Houston’s last nine baseball games. Keep that in mind when looking at the Rangers vs Astros odds.

Who’s Hot

• Yordan Alvarez, Houston Astros DH: Alvarez has four straight two-hit games with four runs, two home runs and seven RBIs in those contests.
• Adolis Garcia, Texas Rangers OF: Garcia is batting .357 with two home runs, three runs scored and six RBIs in his last four games.
• Ryan Pressly, Houston Astros P: Pressly has allowed two hits and no runs with 10 strikeouts in six innings in five appearances during the 2023 postseason.
• Josh Sborz, Texas Rangers P: Sborz has not allowed a run or a hit with six strikeouts in six innings in this year’s playoffs.

Who’s Not

• Dane Dunning, Texas Rangers P: Dunning has given up five hits and four runs with five strikeouts and four walks in 4.2 innings in two postseason appearances in 2023.
• Martin Maldonado, Houston Astros C: Maldonado is 2-for-15 with eight strikeouts in his last six games.
• Marcus Semien, Texas Rangers 2B: Semien was 1-for-12 as Texas dropped three straight home games in the series.
• Framber Valdez, Houston Astros P: Valdez has surrendered 14 hits, two home runs and 10 runs in seven innings in his two postseason starts this year.

Rangers vs Astros Head to Head

The road team won 11 of the last 13 meetings between the Astros and Rangers. Texas has won all six of its road games in this year’s playoffs and that included two games at Minute Maid Park.

Houston won nine of the 13 games during the regular MLB season, including seven wins in the last eight contests.

Ten of the last 12 games between the teams finished over the total.

When looking at the MLB standings, both teams finished the regular season with 90-72 records.

Rangers vs Astros Betting Preview

The bullpen picked the wrong time to implode for the Texas Rangers as the Texas relievers have allowed 18 hits and 14 runs in 20 innings over the last four games.

Despite the struggles of Valdez during this year’s playoffs, the Astros are favored to close things out in Game 6.

Houston has been a much better team on the road than at home this season with the Astros dropping six of its last seven games.

Texas is just 36-38 after a loss this season.

When listed as the favorite by the MLB odds, Houston is 65-59 in 2023 while Texas is 32-28 as the underdog. As a road underdog, the Rangers have won 25 of 47 games.

The total is set at 8.5 for Game 6. Houston is tied for third in the majors with 89 of its games going over the total with 88 games played by the Rangers finishing over the total. Since a 2-0 score in Game 1, the teams have averaged 11 runs in the other games in the ALCS.

Houston is 30-16 this season when listed as the underdog, including a 26-12 mark as the underdog on the road. Texas is 65-46 as the favorite with a 44-26 record at home as the favorite.

While it can be dangerous picking against the Astros when they have a chance to close out a series, the postseason struggles of Valdez are a bit concerning heading into Game 6.

For MLB betting news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.

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