Astros Rangers Betting – Rangers Return Home To Take Down Lowly Astros

Texas’ online betting odds may have taken a small hit during a losing skid on the road, but on Monday they’ll return to the Ballpark to take on Houston in a Lone Star showdown, and the Rangers will regain some confidence by taking a series from the plucky, but talent-deprived, Astros.

• What: MLB Betting
• When: Monday, June 20th-Wednesday, June 22nd
• Where: Rangers Ballpark, Arlington, TX
• Pick: Texas Rangers

(All pitching matchups are tentative)

Monday – J.A. Happ (3-8, 4.95) vs. Derek Holland (5-2, 4.78)

Happ hasn’t won in six starts, racking up four losses and a pair of no-decisions, but he has been hurt by a lack of run support as the Astros have scored more than three runs just once during that time. He’ll be facing the Rangers for the first time in his career, and the 28-year-old southpaw is 1-4 in six starts on the road with a 6.82 ERA. Holland has been all over the place, which sounds about right when you consider that he is still 24 years old, and he’s been having problems keeping the ball in the park as Holland has given up eight homers in his last five starts. He has a no-decision in his lone start against the Astros, which came back in his rookie season of 2009, and the young lefty allowed three runs on five hits over 5.1 innings to take a no-decision in a 6-5 extra-inning win in Houston.

Holland has been the receipient of some good run support, which glosses over his pitching problems, but look for the Astros to back Happ up for once, giving the win to the Astros.

Betting Edge: Houston Astros

Tuesday – Jordan Lyles (0-2, 4.30) vs. C.J. Wilson (7-3, 3.03)

Lyles is still in the rotation despite Wandy Rodriguez’s return from injury, and he’s still looking for the first win of his young major-league career, which has spanned four starts. This is obviously the first time that the 20-year-old righthander goes up against Texas, and so far, he is 0-1 in two starts away from home with a 4.91 ERA. Wilson has three wins and a pair of no-decisions in his last five starts, and he has made four straight starts on the road, so he’ll be excited to get back in his home park, where he is 4-1 in seven starts with a 3.40 ERA. The 30-year-old lefty has faced the Astros 12 times, but there have only been two starts among them, posting a 2-1 record with a 3.52 ERA, and he has a couple of saves to boot.

Despite Alexi Ogando’s hot start, a lot of experts feel that Wilson is the Rangers’ ace since Cliff Lee left for Philadelphia, and he’ll be amped to pitch in front of his home fans, while Lyles will still be looking for his first victory. The Rangers are the MLB betting choice here.

Wednesday – Brett Myers (2-6, 5.03) vs. Colby Lewis (5-7, 4.97)

Myers has been taken deep eight times in his last five starts, and his ERA has risen over a half-run in the last month or so. That’s never a good scene when you’re going up against a team like Texas, especially in a stadium like the Ballpark. The 30-year-old righthander has been to the Ballpark once, back in 2008with Philadelphia, and he lasted just two innings, and he was tagged with five runs on five hits with four walks and a couple of strikeouts in an 8-7 loss, although he earned a no-decision. Lewis has been pounded in his last two starts, allowing 15 runs in 4.2 innings, and two starts ago, he was taken deep four times at home against Detroit. The 31-year-old righty is 1-1 in five outings (two starts) against the Astros with a 2.45 ERA.

This could be a high-scoring affair as both pitchers don’t have their best stuff working right now, so this could come down to the bullpen, and we’re giving the edge to the Rangers at home in our sports betting book.