Rangers vs. Orioles: Early Odds and Preview for ALDS After Wild Card
The first divisional series is set.
The Texas Rangers will face the Baltimore Orioles in the ALDS after disposing of Baltimore's AL East rivals, the Tampa Bay Rays, in two games during the Wild Card Round.
It was a dominant showing from the Rangers, who finished off the Rays by an 11-1 scoreline in the two matchups. Their reward, however, is the American League's best team during the regular season in the Orioles, who won 101 games. Only the Atlanta Braves (104 wins) had more regular-season success.
The best-of-five series will open in Baltimore on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET, with the Orioles (-110) and Rangers (-110) having the same odds to advance, per DraftKings Sportsbook.
It should be a fantastic matchup.
The teams split the regular-season series, 3-3. The Rangers are led by a fearsome offense that finished first in the American League in runs (881), batting average (.263), on-base percentage (.337), slugging percentage (.452) and tied for first in homers (233).
Corey Seager (.327 with 33 homers and 96 RBI in just 119 games) and Marcus Semien (.276 with 29 homers and 100 RBI) lead the way for a lineup featuring seven players who hit 17 or more home runs. The Rangers are now 52-31 when both Corey and Josh Jung play, and both are healthy heading into the ALDS.
Where the Rangers are hurting is in the rotation, with Jacob deGrom out for the season and Max Scherzer and Jon Gray both on the injured list and unavailable for the ALDS.
Starters Jordan Montgomery and Nathan Eovaldi combined to just give up one run in 13.2 innings against the Rays, but beyond that it could get dicey, including when it comes to a dreadful bullpen that had a woeful 47.6 percent success rate in save opportunities this season.
The Orioles have home-field advantage and the stronger pitching staff, finishing the season fifth in the American League in ERA (3.89) and WHIP (1.24), and arguably don't have any glaring weaknesses in general. They play good defense, run the bases well, can hit for power and have a solid rotation and bullpen.
Dan Connolly @danconnolly2016My way-too early take on a Rangers-Orioles ALDS — and I will have a preview for Sportsnaut before Saturday's Game 1 — is that the Orioles have a distinct advantage in bullpens, which is huge in a short series. That said, goodness can the Rangers hit. Should be interesting.
There may be some concern about the ninth inning after closer Félix Bautista was forced to undergo Tommy John surgery. But thus far, a matchup-reliant platoon has worked in save opportunities, and since Bautista's August injury the team's bullpen has a 3.54 ERA, led by electric righty Yennier Cano.
The Orioles' core of young stars feels ahead of schedule, but after their excellent regular season it's hard to imagine them shrinking in the moment. The Rangers can flat-out rake, though, giving this series the feel of a potential classic.
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