2022 Series Poll: Houston Astros @ Texas Rangers

Quick Notes

The Astros will return once more to Arlington to face off against their in-state divisional rivals, the Rangers. What is not familiar about this quick three-game road trip, however, is seeing the Rangers in 2nd place in the division. This comes after a couple weeks that saw the Angels fall precipitously from their perch to just below Arlington in the standings.

This new position comes with a sub-500 record, though, so it’s more the Angels losing rather than the Rangers winning. This feels especially true when you look at the Rangers’ 4-7 record in the month of June. They’ve managed just one series win in that time, which came in a 12 inning game against the White Sox just yesterday.

If you look at Arlington’s offensive numbers on the season so far, their underwater record makes a lot more sense. No one has an OPS significantly above .750. Indeed, Nathaniel Lowe is their best player with over 200 AB’s, and he only sits at .755 for the season.

That’s not the same as who’s hot right now though, a list that includes the aforementioned Lowe (.385/.407/.731 in last 7 games), Marcus Semien (.385/.448/.769 in last 7), and Adolis Garcia (.360/.448/.600 in last 7), who all have OPS’s north of 1.000 in the last week. 2B Ezequil Duran (.320/.346/.480 in last 7) has been swinging a hot bat as well, but after that the numbers fall off across the board. They are especially poor for big-contract player Corey Seager (.115/.172/.231 in last 7), who has been ice cold this season.

The pitching has certainly been a much brighter part for the Rangers this year. While the starters not named Martin Perez have 2022 numbers that range from average to not great, the bullpen has had several steady arms. Speaking of Perez, he’s been an absolute revelation in the Rangers’ rotation this season, producing a 2.18 ERA across 74.1 innings in 2022. While he had seen success in Boston, returning to the team that started it all for him seems to have really resuscitated his career. Fortunately for the Astros, it looks like they will miss him this series.

Closer Joe Barlow (RHP, 3.22 ERA, 22.1 IP, 19 K’s) has 11 saves under his belt so far this season, with only two blown opportunities. He’s joined by Matt Bush (RHP, 3.97 ERA, 22.2 IP, 30 K’s) and Dennis Santana (RHP, 1.50 ERA, 24.0 IP, 14 K’s) to create a tough back end of a pen. Expect to see any one of those three if the games are on the line for Arlington.

Last 10 Games: 4-6 Record, 1 Series Win, 2 Series Losses, -8 Run Differential (43 scored, 51 allowed)

W/L Splits: 13-16 at home, 15-15 on the road, 12-17 against teams over .500

Injured List: Steele Walker: 10-Day IL (covid-19), Brett Martin: 15-Day IL (covid-19), Glenn Otto: 15-Day IL (covid-19), Mitch Garver: 10-Day IL (covid-19), Josh Smith: 10-Day IL (shoulder), Jose Leclerc: 60-Day IL (elbow), Jonathan Hernandez: 60-Day IL (elbow)

Starters

Game 1: Cristian Javier (RHP, 3-3, 3.22 ERA, 56 K’s) vs Taylor Hearn (LHP, 4-4, 5.40 ERA, 47 K’s)

Game 2: TBD vs Dane Dunning (RHP, 1-4, 4.41 ERA, 64 K’s)

Game 3: Luis Garcia (RHP, 3-5, 3.60 ERA, 60 K’s) vs TBD

For Your Viewing and Listening Pleasure

Game 1: Monday, June 13th @ 7:05 pm CDT
Listen: Astros - KBME 790 AM/94.5 FM HD-2, KTRH 740 AM/99.1 FM HD-2, TUDN 93.3/KLAT 1010 / Rangers - KRLD 1080, 105.3 The Fan, KFLC 1270
Watch: Astros - ATT SportsNet-SW / Rangers - Bally Sports Southwest / MLB Network (out-of-market only)

Game 2: Tuesday, June 14th @ 7:05 pm CDT
Listen: Astros - KBME 790 AM/94.5 FM HD-2, KTRH 740 AM/99.1 FM HD-2, TUDN 93.3/KLAT 1010 / Rangers - KRLD 1080, 105.3 The Fan, KFLC 1270
Watch: Astros - ATT SportsNet-SW / Rangers - Bally Sports Southwest

Game 3: Wednesday, June 15th @ 1:05 pm CDT
Listen: Astros - KBME 790 AM/94.5 FM HD-2, TUDN 93.3/KLAT 1010 / Rangers - KRLD 1080, 105.3 The Fan, KFLC 1270
Watch: Astros - ATT SportsNet-SW / Rangers - Bally Sports Southwest