MLB Betting – Red Sox vs Rangers Preview & Pick
So far, so good for the Boston Red Sox on their road trip. They opened by taking three of four from the Kansas City Royals.
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MLB Betting – Red Sox vs. Rangers Preview & Pick
Date: Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Venue: Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, Arlington, TX
Broadcast: NESN, FSH
Boston Red Sox at Texas Rangers Betting Lines from BetOnline.com
Money Line: Texas -152
Over/Under: 7
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Boston Red Sox (77-49 through August 21)
John Lackey (11-9, 6.02)
Their visit to Texas, though, should be a much bigger challenge. Boston is still without Clay Buchholz (back) on the pitching side; Kevin Youkilis and J.D. Drew remain on the DL; and David Ortiz and Jacoby Ellsbury may also sit out Tuesday’s action with nagging injuries.
Now is as good a time as ever for John Lackey to step up and yank that ERA below 6.00. He’s 5-1 since the All-Star break even though opponents are batting .314 off him and he has a 4.53 ERA over that stretch. But with so many Boston hitters nicked up, he probably can’t count on his usual excellent run support Tuesday.
Texas Rangers (73-55 through August 21)
Colby Lewis (11-8, 3.83)
The Texas Rangers are ready for home. They steamrolled the competition for the early part of their road trip but finished by losing three of four. [dfads params=’groups=10&limit=1&return_javascript=0′]
At Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, the Rangers bat .293 and slug .503 as a team, so the likes of Michael Young and Josh Hamilton are licking their chops.
Colby Lewis may not be so happy. He hasn’t been great in Texas this season, going 4-4 with a 5.15 ERA and an ugly 18 homers allowed in just 73.1 innings.
MLB Trends
Under is 8-1 in BOS last 9 overall.
Under is 8-1 in BOS last 9 on grass.
BOS are 39-19 in their last 58 road games.
TEX are 16-5 in their last 21 home games.
TEX are 6-2 in their last 8 Tue. games.
TEX are 11-4 in their last 15 overall.
BOS are 5-16 in the last 21 meetings.
MLB Free pick:
Though Lewis has scuffled at home this season, he has a respectable 3.38 lifetime ERA against Boston. On the flipside, the Rangers own Lackey historically. They’ve tuned him for a 6.07 ERA and 29 homers in 184 innings.
The numbers for some Texas hitters against Lackey are eye-popping. Hamilton bats .478 with three homers and seven RBI in 23 at-bats; Ian Kinsler sits at .480 with three homers and seven RBI over 25 at-bats; and Young hits .360 with 15 driven in over 89 at-bats. These guys mash Lackey.
Since Lackey also won’t have a fully healthy lineup backing him, the Rangers look like a great choice for Tuesday.
Red Sox vs Rangers prediction: Rangers 8, Red Sox 4
