New York Mets (60-71) vs Texas Rangers (73-57)
Game Info: Monday, August 28, 2023 at 7:10 pm (Citi Field)
Tylor Megill (7-7) (5.54) vs Jon Gray (8-7) (3.76)
Betting Odds: New York Mets +110 / Texas Rangers -130 --- Over/Under: 9 Click Here for the Latest Odds
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The Texas Rangers will play the New York Mets in Game 1 of their series on Monday night at Citi Field in Queens, New York. The Mets were able to avoid being swept by the Angels on Sunday, but they will face a Texas team that has one of the better lineups in baseball in this matchup. Texas has dropped to second in the AL West, but they get the opportunity to bounce back against one of the most disappointing teams in the MLB.
Rangers Preview
The Texas Rangers are 73-57 this season and they have lost nine of their last ten games. Texas is coming off of a series loss to Minnesota, where they lost three out of four games. The Rangers bullpen has been really bad over the last two weeks and they are now chasing Seattle in the AL West. The Texas pitching staff has a 4.11 ERA, a 1.24 WHIP, and a .241 opponent batting average this year. The Rangers offense has scored 727 runs with a .268 batting average and a .338 on base percentage. Adolis Garcia is batting .250 with 32 home runs and 94 RBI’s for the Rangers. The projected starting pitcher for Texas is Jon Gray, who is 8-7 with a 3.76 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP over 131.2 innings pitched this season.
Mets Preview
The New York Mets are 60-71 this season and they have lost four of their last five games. New York is coming off of a series loss to the Angels, where they lost two out of three games. The Mets offense continues to hit poorly, scoring three runs or fewer in six of their last seven games. The New York pitching staff has a 4.47 ERA, a 1.38 WHIP, and a .250 opponent batting average this season. The Mets offense has scored 572 runs with a .237 batting average and a .318 on base percentage. Pete Alonso is batting .223 with 39 home runs and 96 RBI’s for the Mets. The projected starting pitcher for New York is Tylor Megill, who is 7-7 with a 5.54 ERA and a 1.73 WHIP over 91 innings pitched this year.
New York Mets Team Facts
- The Mets have won each of their last five games as underdogs against the Rangers.
- The Mets have failed to cover the run line in each of their last 10 games as underdogs against American League opponents.
- The Mets have trailed after 3 innings in each of their last three night games against American League opponents.
- The Mets have trailed after 7 innings in each of their last seven night games against American League opponents.
- The Mets have led after 5 innings in three of their last four games as home underdogs against American League opponents.
Texas Rangers Team Facts
- The Rangers have lost each of their last six games against National League opponents.
- The Rangers have failed to cover the run line 10 of their last 11 road games against National League opponents that held a losing record.
- The 'Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs' market has hit in each of the Rangers' last four games as favorites.
- The Rangers have trailed after 5 innings in each of their last five road games against National League opponents that held a losing record.
- The Rangers have trailed after 3 innings in three of their last four games as favorites against National League opponents.
New York Mets Player Prop Facts
- Pete Alonso has hit a home run in five of his last seven home appearances against AL opponents that held a winning record.
- Daniel Vogelbach has recorded at least one RBI in each of the Mets' last five Monday games as underdogs.
- Daniel Vogelbach has scored at least one run in eight of his last nine appearances against the Rangers.
- Tylor Megill has recorded five or more strikeouts in three of his last four home appearances.
- Daniel Vogelbach has recorded two or more total bases in each of his last three appearances against the Rangers.
- Francisco Lindor has recorded at least one hit in each of the Mets' last 10 night games.
- Pete Alonso ranks 8th amongst qualified players for Slugging Percentage (.523) this season.
Texas Rangers Player Prop Facts
- Corey Seager has hit a home run in each of his last two appearances against NL East opponents.
- Jon Gray has recorded six or more strikeouts in three of his last four appearances with the Rangers as favorites.
- Corey Seager has recorded at least one RBI in four of the Rangers' last five road games.
- Marcus Semien has scored at least one run in seven of the Rangers' last eight games against NL East opponents.
- Corey Seager has recorded two or more total bases in each of his last nine appearances with his team as a road favorite against the Mets.
- Nathaniel Lowe has recorded at least one hit in each of the Rangers' last seven games as favorites against NL opponents.
Matchup/League Facts
- The New York Mets ranks 26th in the league for walks allowed this season (487).
- The New York Mets ranks 24th in the league for batting average this season (.237).
- The Texas Rangers ranks 2nd in the league for doubles this season (278).
- The Texas Rangers ranks 2nd in the league for batting average this season (.268).
Pick
Texas has not played well in their last 10 games and the bullpen has played a big part in that. The Rangers now trail Seattle in the AL West and are tied for second with the Astros. Texas needs to take advantage of a bad New York team in this series, or they may find themselves in third place. The Rangers are starting Jon Gray, who has allowed five earned runs or more in three of his last five starts. New York is starting Tylor Megill, who has allowed five earned runs in two of his last four starts. Neither starting pitcher has been very good lately, but I am going to stick with the Rangers here. Texas has the better lineup and even though they are under .500 on the road, I like them to win.
David’s Pick Rangers ML
AUTHOR: David Racey
Mitch's Take...
