Astros vs. Rangers ALCS Game 3 SGP picks: Bet on Texas and the under
The Texas Rangers get back to Arlington, Texas with a 2-0 series lead over the Houston Astros.
The pregame narrative: The first two games of this series were tightly-contested matchups and the third should be no different. We're teasing Texas to run-line underdog status and backing the under on an alternate total as well. Leody Taveras is having a solid series and is a nice selection to record a hit.
MLB oddsas of 8:12 a.m. on 10/18/2023.
Astros vs. Rangers SGP
Parlay: Rangers +1.5 + Under 10.5 runs + Taveras to record 1+ hit (+265)
Rangers +1.5 (-245): Texas has slightly outperformed Houston in each of the first two games of this series.
And maybe that was to be expected considering the Astros' stark and bizarre home-road splits from this season. They had a losing record at Minute Maid Park (39-42) but a winning record away from it (51-30) during the regular season.
But we're likely going to see the best both teams have to offer at Globe Life Field. For as strong as Houston was on the road, the Rangers were near-equally as potent at home. They posted a 50-31 record in their own building and had a substantially higher OPS (.844 to .737) per Statmuse.
Other parlay picks
Under 10.5 runs (-190): Runs weren't very easy to come by for either team in the first couple of games and we don't see that changing on Wednesday.
Cristian Javier takes the bump for Houston and he's been an electric postseason performer. In 15 career games, including three starts, he has a 1.91 ERA and has held opposing hitters to a .119 batting average.
He twirled five innings of scoreless, one-hit ball against the Minnesota Twins in his most recent appearance.
Texas counters with Max Scherzer who's making his return from a shoulder injury. The veteran talent was pitching effectively with the Rangers following his trade from the New York Mets, pairing a 3.20 ERA with a 3.41 FIP in eight games before getting hurt.
Scherzer, a World Series champion, has made 27 postseason appearances in his career and combines a 3.58 ERA with a 3.75 FIP in those outings.
Taveras to record 1+ hit (-162): Lastly, we're looking for an unheralded hitter to deliver.
Taveras likely isn't the first name you think of when listing the key bats that litter the Rangers' lineup. He is having a solid campaign, however, and has a good track record versus Javier.
The centrefielder slashed .266/.312/.421 in the regular season, notching career-bests across the board.
He's enjoying quite the postseason, too, batting .348 and slugging .609 with three hits and two extra-base knocks in this series alone.
Taveras has 15 at-bats against Javier and has fared well against the righty. He has five hits, including a double and a home run.
