Astros vs. Rangers Prediction & Betting Tips - October 18 | 2023 MLB AL Championship Series game

Modified Oct 18, 2023 01:29 GMT

Houston Astros, Texas Rangers — Houston Astros and Texas Rangers

The American League Championship series featuring the Texas Rangers and the Houston Astros will shift its base from Minute Maid Park, Houston, to Globe Life Field, Arlington, for Game 3 on Wednesday, October 18. The Rangers have taken an early 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.

The Astros, on the other hand, would like to come back stronger and register their first win of the series.

Astros vs. Rangers Prediction

The Houston Astros could not defend their home stand and now would like to do the same to the Rangers. Both the games were highly dominated by the pitchers as only 11 runs were scored across the first two games in the series.

For the Rangers, right-handed pitcher Max Scherzer (13-6, 3.77 ERA) will take the mound, while Astros' ace Cristian Javier (10-5, 4.56 ERA) will look to pose a challenge to the Texas hitters.

Earlier in September in a game against the Toronto Blue Jays, the three-time Cy Young winner had to exit the game due to a low-grade strain on his right teres major muscle. Scherzer, since then, has worked on his recovery and will make a return on the mound in Game 3.

On the other hand, Javier had a great outing against the Minnesota Twins, pitching five scoreless frames. Overall, he has a 5-1 record with an ERA of 1.91 and 57 strikeouts in 15 appearances in the postseason in his career.

Now, given that the Rangers pitchers were able to lock out the Astros offense, it seems the orange army is poised for a strong comeback and will win this game by a three-run margin, with their postseason hero Cristian Javier on the mound.

Astros vs. Rangers Betting Tips

According to betting trends, the Rangers are favorites (-132, bet $132 to win $100) against the underdogs Astros (+113, bet $100 to win $113) with an over/under of 9.

World Series Odds:

Texas Rangers: +110

Houston Astros: +750