Houston Astros vs Texas Rangers Prediction, 10/19/2023 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Houston Astros vs Texas Rangers

Date: Thursday, October 19, 2023

Location: Globe Life Field in Arlington, TX

TV: FS1

Odds/Point Spread: Houston (+140) Texas (-1700)

The Houston Astros are traveling to Globe Life Field on Thursday where they will take on the Texas Rangers in Game 4 of the ALCS. The moneyline on this contest has Houston at +140 and Texas is sitting at -1700. The over/under has been set at 9. The starting pitchers will be Jose Urquidy and Andrew Heaney.

The Astros have tallied 280 two-baggers as a unit and have hit 222 baseballs out of the park. Houston has a slugging percentage of .437 and have been called out on strikes 1,241 times, while drawing a walk on 550 occasions. As a squad, the Houston Astros are notching 5.1 runs per game, which has them sitting at 5th in baseball. They have 799 runs batted in and 1,441 base knocks over the course of the season, and their average at the plate sits at .259. They have 827 runs and have an on-base percentage of .331.

The Astros have an ERA of 3.94 on the campaign (8th in baseball), and their staff has struck out 1,460 hitters. Astros pitchers have surrendered 201 home runs and also 698 runs in total (9th in MLB). They have walked 537 opposing hitters and their FIP comes in at 4.31 as a unit for the season. Houston has allowed 1,312 base hits (8.2 per 9 innings) as well as 632 earned runs. They have earned a strikeout to walk ratio of 2.72 and the pitching staff has earned a collective WHIP of 1.28.

The Astros relief pitchers have accumulated a save rate of 68.9% and has entered the game in 148 save situations. The relief pitchers have inherited 161 runners on the year with 31.1% of those players crossed home plate. Astros pitchers have stepped onto the hill with runners on 97 times in addition to having 151 appearances in high leverage situations. The Astros have dispatched 513 relief pitchers to the mound so far this year. The relief pitchers have racked up 86 holds for the year (15th in the league). They have recorded 42 saves this year and have blown 19 of their 61 save chances.

The Houston Astros have 4,336 putouts this year, as well as 1,346 assists and 81 errors. Their fielding percentage sits at .986 which has them ranked 14th in baseball, and they have twisted 144 double plays. The Astros have turned 69.7% of balls in play into outs out of 13,008 innings, which has them sitting 10th in the majors.

Urquidy has thrown 405 innings and has racked up 326 punch outs in his career. His ERA is 3.98 (179 ER's allowed) and he has a WHIP of 1.143. He has given up 366 base knocks (8.1 hits per 9 innings) and has 97 free passes. Urquidy (27-16 career record) has earned a FIP of 4.51 and he has gone up against 1,662 opposing hitters in the major leagues.

The Texas Rangers have accumulated an OBP of .337 in addition to a team batting average of .263 over the course of the season. They have struck out on 1,416 instances (14th in baseball) and have notched a total of 1,470 hits. Texas has tallied 233 home runs this season to go along with 845 runs batted in. The Rangers hold a slugging percentage of .452 and they are recording 5.44 runs per game (3rd in the league). They have put up 326 doubles, while taking a walk 599 times and putting up 881 runs.

The Rangers have a team WHIP of 1.268 and have a FIP of 4.32 as a staff for the season. Their strikeout to walk ratio comes in at 8.50 (1,351 strikeouts vs 491 walks). They come in at 13th in the league as a pitching staff in total hits conceded with 1,330. They have given up 198 long balls and they surrender 4.49 runs per 9 innings (14th in the league). The Texas pitching staff have relinquished 716 runs for the year while holding a team ERA of 4.28 (683 earned runs surrendered).

Sitting with 146 save situations, the Rangers have tallied 80 holds in addition to 33 blown saves. Texas has had bullpen pitchers take the mound in 63 save chances and they have converted 30 saves. Their relievers have stepped onto the hill 160 times in high leverage situations and on 163 occasions with base runners. Texas relievers have an inherited score percentage of 31.5% out of their 273 inherited runners. They are currently ranked 30th in the league with a save rate of 47.6%, and they have dispatched 467 relievers to the mound on the season.

The Texas Rangers have turned 143 double plays and hold a fielding percentage of .990 (2nd in pro baseball). The Rangers have 1,423 assists, 57 errors and have a total of 4,309 putouts this year. Out of their 12,927 innings on the field, the Rangers hold a defensive efficiency of 70.3% (4th in the majors).

In his MLB career, Heaney has given up 825 hits while tallying 911 strikeouts in 854 innings. He has allowed 426 earned runs while earning a WHIP of 1.268 and being the owner of a FIP of 4.4. He has a K/BB ratio of 3.53 and he has gone up against 3,636 opposing batters during his career. Heaney (46-48 career mark) is the owner of a 4.49 ERA while conceding 8.7 hits per nine innings.

Who will win tonight's MLB game against the spread or moneyline?

Parlay's Pundit's Pick: Take Texas (-1700) and under 9 runs

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