The AL West rivals will battle for victory Monday night. The Texas Rangers (42-48; 18-27 away) are in Anaheim, home of the Los Angeles Angels (37-52; 18-26 home). These teams first met in May, a series the Angels won over the Rangers in Texas. This time, the venue is Angel Stadium. Game 1 is set for 9:38 p.m. ET. Who will start the week off right?
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Texas tries to catch up
You can’t defend a title without making the playoffs. That’s a reality the Rangers are facing right now. Their rise to a wild-card spot should start with an offensive renaissance. Texas only puts The St. Louis Cardinals are batting at 4.32 runs per game, which ranks 15th in the major leagues and well below their 2023 production. This year, the roster is 18th in batting average, 19th in OBP, 20th in home runs, 21st in slugging percentage and 21st in stolen bases. Their biggest asset right now is a strikeout percentage that is seventh-lowest in the league. Still, scoring is what this team is built to succeed on, and even after Sunday’s 13-run outburst, they aren’t crossing the plate enough to be consistently competitive.
On the mound, the Rangers have started July well. In six games, the team has allowed 14 runs, including six in one game. Jon Gray Gray started this loss with six runs, allowing three in 4.0 innings, but he’ll look to bounce back Monday. Gray has a 1.35 ERA against the AL West this season. Overall, he has a 3.92 ERA, 3.52 FIP and 1.332 WHIP. The bullpen behind him is 25th in ERA and 23rd in FIP, so he’ll try to limit their workload. Let’s see if he can follow the rest of the staff’s lead this month.
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Los Angeles loses a lot
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are a professional baseball organization. They have lost six of their last seven games, holding three scoreless. In one of the others, they managed a run. Back at home, an offense that is averaging 4.03 runs per game (24th) will be looking to warm up. Without Mike Trout, the Angels are 20th in batting average, 23rd in OBP and 17th in slugging percentage. They are 19th in strikeout rate and 21st in walk rate. On the positive side, Los Angeles has the eighth-most stolen bases this season. However, that comes with a stolen base percentage that ranks 27th. Can the Halos get into a rhythm before the much-anticipated All-Star break?
Don’t count on this pitching staff to get any relief. They’ve been miserable, too. The Angels’ bullpen is 28th in ERA, 27th in FIP and 25th at warwhich makes most pitches shaky. That puts a lot of pressure on an unstable rotation. Rookie Davis Daniel joined the fray, making his third start of the season Monday. The last time he played, he allowed five runs (four earned) in 5.1 innings pitched. However, that was on the road, while his only home start was a spectacular 8.0 innings scoreless outing, with eight strikeouts and no walks. Let’s see if he can replicate that against the Rangers.
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Best Bets for Texas Rangers vs. Los Angeles Angels
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Davis Daniel needs to prove that giving up five runs against a terrible offense in a pitcher’s stadium was an exception. Until then, expect a solid Rangers offense, fresh off a monster performance, to put up similar numbers. The Los Angeles bullpen is one of the worst in MLB.
For Texas, Jon Gray hasn’t allowed more than one earned run against an AL West rival all season. Texas’ bullpen is slightly more reliable than LA’s. Against a weak and declining Angels offense, the Rangers should be comfortable on the mound. Expect them to win by multiple runs.
Prediction: Texas Rangers -1.5
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Angel Stadium tends to favor hitters. Both starting pitchers in this game have gotten off to rough starts. Each bullpen is unreliable, with an ERA and FIP in the bottom 10.
A Texas team that just scored 13 runs should take over the opening kickoff. The Angels’ OPS climbs to .711 at home, so they’re a bigger threat in Anaheim. Count on the over for the series opener.
Prediction: Over 8.5
