The Houston Astros will look to bolster their win total and reward moneyline bettors when the Texas Rangers invade Minute Maid Park on Friday.

Matt Garza gets the ball in front of a hostile crowd for the Rangers on this day; he's 7-2 on the season. The Astros, meanwhile, will counter with Erik Bedard, who will be looking to improve on his 3-8 mark.



View Texas vs Houston Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
Sportsbooks such as Sportsbook had set the Astros as +161 underdogs on the moneyline for this contest. The over under was hovering near 7.5 for bettors hoping to turn a profit on totals at Sportsbook.

Power Rankings:
This game puts the Astros, most recently No. 15 in the American League Odds Shark MLB Power Rankings, up against the Rangers, who rate an American League No. 4 in the latest survey.



How They Match Up:
Scoring stats point to some edges in this matchup. The game features Houston's American League No. 13-ranked scoring average of 3.8 runs per game, against a Rangers offense rated No. 9 and scoring 4.3 runs per game in the league. The Astros have averaged 7.9 hits per game to date this season, less than the Rangers hitters have managed (9 per nine innings).

Pitching and defensive stats are important baseball handicapping factors and Houston has the American League's No. 15-ranked defense. In the other dugout, the Rangers own the American League's No. 5 mark in runs allowed.

Texas was a 10-3 Sportsbook in its last match on the road against the Angels. They won as -117 favorites, while the total score of 13 made Sportsbooks of OVER bettors. Texas looks to continue its winning ways following a victory last time out against the Angels, a 10-3 final on Wednesday in support of Alexi Ogando at Angel Stadium.

The Astros were a 7-5 loser in their most recent outing at home against the Red Sox. That made Sportsbooks of bettors who got Boston at -170 on the moneyline, while the total score (12) was good news for OVER bettors. Houston suffered a 7-5 loss against Boston on Wednesday, as Jarred Cosart wasn't able to lead his team to victory at Minute Maid Park.


Texas Rangers Trends:
When playing on Friday are 7-3
Before playing Houston are 8-2
After playing LA Angels are 9-1
After a win are 7-3

Houston Astros Trends:
When playing on Friday are 3-7
Before playing Texas are 2-8
After playing Boston are 2-8
After a loss are 3-7

A few Rangers at Astros trends to consider:
Texas is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Houston
Texas is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games
Texas is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games when playing Houston
Texas is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Houston's last 5 games when playing Texas
Houston is 3-13 SU in its last 16 games at home
Houston is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games
Houston is 1-7 SU in its last 8 games when playing Texas


Next up:
Texas at Houston, Saturday, August 10