Rangers-Padres prediction: Picks, odds on Saturday, July 29

The Texas Rangers and San Diego Padres will do battle for the second game of their weekend series tonight. First pitch is scheduled for 8:40 p.m. ET at Petco Park in San Diego. Martin Perez (8-3, 4.91 ERA) will step on the hill for the Rangers and go head to-head with Padres ace Yu Darvish (7-7, 4.80 ERA).

San Diego enters the game as a -180 favorite on the moneyline over at DraftKings Sportsbook, while Texas is a +155 underdog. The run total is set at 9.

Rangers-Padres picks: Saturday, July 29

Injury report

Rangers

Out: C Jonah Heim (wrist), SS Corey Seager (thumb)

Padres

Out: SP Michael Wacha (shoulder), 3B Eguy Rosario (ankle), OF Preston Tucker (foot)

Starting pitchers

Perez hasn’t been totally flawless as of late, but he’s held up his end of the bargain as the Rangers have won in four of his last five starts. He got the win in last Sunday’s 8-4 victory over the Dodgers, yielding four earned runs through six full innings of action. He does have a 4-2 record on the road this year, but is sporting a 5.98 ERA in those contests. He’ll have to try to maintain control early to buck that trend.

Darvish had been excellent through his first three starts in July, but was roughed up in Monday’s loss to the Pirates. He was tagged for seven earned runs off eight hits and three walks before being yanked in the middle of the fifth. Opposing batters are hitting .438 against him when the count is 0-0, so look for the Rangers to be aggressive during the first pitch of their at-bats tonight.

Over/Under pick

Both of these lineups can slug and they will be facing starting pitchers who have been vulnerable to be hit around from time to time. Nine runs is a low bar for both of these clubs to easily clear this evening.

Pick: Over 9

Moneyline pick

Texas’ bats went to sleep in last night’s 7-1 loss and with a steady hand like Perez on the mound tonight, it is bound to flip the script and even this series. Expect the Rangers to put a bulk of their runs on the board within the first four innings and continue to build from there.