The American League West is the American League's worst.
No division in the AL—in fact, no division in all of baseball—is as hapless as the one with the Rangers, Astros, Mariners, Athletics and Angels. The leader of the division, Texas, owns the worst record (55-54) of all of the division leaders while the worst team in the AL West, the Angels (42-67), is tied for the worst record in the majors.
And on Friday, the Rangers and Astros battle to be the best of the worst. Texas leads Lone Star State rival Houston (55-55) by just a half game. Seattle trails by 2.5 games. Nathan Eovaldi (10-8, 4.05 ERA) is set to take the mound for the Rangers, while Hunter Brown (2-1, 3.45) is scheduled to get the ball for the Astros. AL MVP favorite Yordan Alvarez and Houston are -130 favorites over Texas (+109).
While Astros vs. Rangers is the marquee attraction on Friday, there are other options on a sporting landscape that includes a full MLB schedule. Below is a snapshot of what to watch and bet at the best sports betting apps for Friday, July 31. All times Eastern.
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MLB best bets, where to watch
Pirates at Reds
Time: 6:10 p.m. | Location: Cincinnati | TV: MLB.TV | Stream: Fubo (Try for free)
SportsLine pick -- Model: Reds +1.5 -165 | Expert: Hunter Greene Over 7.5 strikeouts +120 (Angelo Magliocca)
Pittsburgh's Paul Skenes (9-9, 3.65) takes on Cincinnati's Hunter Greene (2-2, 7.06) in an intriguing pitching matchup. Greene has a favorable spot against a Pirates team that has struck out 719 times against righties this season, the third most in all of baseball. "Coming off a lower pitch count in what might be his final start in Cincy, I'm taking the ladder at 8,9,10 [strikeouts]," Magliocca says. The SportsLine Projection Model, which simulates every MLB game 10,000 times, says the Reds have a 60% chance to cover and assigns a "C" grade to Cincinnati run line +1.5 (-165)
White Sox at Rays
Time: 7:10 p.m. | Location: St. Petersburg, Fla. | TV: MLB.TV | Stream: Fubo (Try for free)
SportsLine pick -- Model: Rays -138 | Expert: Rays -136 (Adam Thompson)
Two division leaders in the American League square off when Tampa Bay (64-44) and Chicago (57-51) open a three-game series in Florida. The Rays enter the series on a roll, having gone 8-2 over their last 10 games. They also have the best home record (40-16) in the majors, while the White Sox are just 23-30 on the road. Thompson notes Chicago starter Erick Fedde (5-6, 4.25) has a 5.40 ERA away from home. "[Fedde] is an every-now-and-then starter who isn't likely to go five innings," Thompson says. Those betting on baseball have additional confidence from the SportsLine Projection Model. It says Tampa Bay has a 57% chance to win and gives a "C" grade to Rays money line (-138).
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Rangers at Astros
Time: 8:15 p.m. | Location: Houston | TV: Apple TV
SportsLine pick -- Model: Astros -129 | Expert: Astros -125 (Jeff Hochman)
Houston enters the first game of this key series with the edge in starting pitching. Brown (2-1, 3.45) is limiting opponents to a .192 batting average this season, and the Rangers are batting just .216 over 111 plate appearances against him. Meanwhile, Houston is batting .289 with an expected slugging percentage of .502 and an expected weighted on-base average of .361 in 230 plate appearances against Eovaldi. In addition, "the Rangers' bullpen enters this game severely taxed, having thrown 225 pitches over the past five days," Hochman says. The SportsLine Projection Model agrees. It says Houston has a 60% chance to win and assigns a "C" grade to Astros money line (-129).
Giants at Padres
Time: 9:45 p.m. | Location: San Diego | TV: Apple TV
SportsLine pick -- Model: Giants +125
Though San Francisco (47-62) has one of the worst records in baseball, the team has played better over the last week, going 5-2 in its last seven games, including a 4-1 victory over the Padres on Thursday night. On Friday, the Giants will send out lefty Carson Whisenhunt (2-1, 4.60) and San Diego has struggled this season against southpaws, ranking 27th in the majors in OPS (.662). The SportsLine Projection Model says San Francisco has a 52% chance to win and gives a "B" grade to Giants money line (+125).
Red Sox at Dodgers
Time: 10:10 p.m. | Location: Los Angeles | TV: MLB.TV | Stream: Fubo (Try for free)
SportsLine pick -- Model: Dodgers -132 | Expert: Dodgers +1.5 -188 (Matt Severance)
Two-way star Shohei Ohtani is expected to return to the lineup when Los Angeles begins a three-game series against Boston. That's obviously big news for the Dodgers; Ohtani is 6-for-11 with a home run and four RBI over his last three games. Red Sox starter Ranger Suarez is making just his second start after a three-week absence, so he may not be stretched out to go deep into the game. "I do reserve the right to call this off if Shohei Ohtani is not in the lineup, but by all accounts he will be," Severance says. The SportsLine Projection Model says the Dodgers have a 64% chance to win and assigns a "B" grade to Los Angeles money line (-132).
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