Helping to close out Saturday’s loaded MLB slate, the Texas Rangers will take on the Athletics in an American League West showdown, with first pitch scheduled for 9:40 p.m. ET.

The Athletics opened the series with an 8-3 win on Friday. They have also faced off in two series already this season, with the Athletics winning five of these eight matchups. MacKenzie Gore and J.T. Ginn will take the ball for their respective squads for Game 2 of this series.

Looking at the odds, the Rangers enter as 1.5-run road favorites with -154 moneyline odds on DraftKings Sportsbook. The Athletics are +143 underdogs, with the game total set at 9.5 runs.

Rangers at Athletics prediction, preview

The Texas Rangers enter this matchup with a 60-63 record on the season. They are currently three games back from the top spot in the AL West, and they are a half-game back from the final Wild Card seed. Texas enters this matchup looking to snap a four-game losing streak. On the season overall, the Rangers have gone 56-67 to the run line, and the run total 62-55-6 to the over/under.

MacKenzie Gore will take the ball for the Rangers on Saturday, marking his 26th start of the season. The left-hander enters with a 6-9 record, a 4.43 ERA, and a 1.24 WHIP with 149 strikeouts and 17 home runs allowed in 134 innings. The former All-Star has had some ups and downs this season, but is coming off 5.1 innings of one-run ball in his previous start and six shutout frames before that. Gore has faced off with this Athletics lineup in 41 at-bats in his career. Albeit a small sample size, he has struggled in those chances, allowing a .390 batting average and a 918 OPS with only 10 strikeouts.

At the plate, the Rangers are slashing a collective .242/.315/.394 with a .709 OPS. Texas ranks 19th in hits, 25th in total runs, 18th in home runs, and 17th in strikeouts. Brandon Nimmo headlines the production for the Rangers, with a team-high 121 hits, 13 home runs, and 47 RBIs on the season. Ezequiel Duran adds 106 hits, 13 home runs, and 64 RBIs of his own, while Jake Burger has supplied 20 home runs and a team-high 71 RBIs. Joc Pederson leads the team with 22 home runs and 46 RBIs, while Wyatt Langford and Evan Carter also play important roles.

The Athletics enter Saturday’s matchup with a 48-74 record. They are 14.5 games back from the top seed in the division, and 11.5 games back from the Wild Card race. The Athletics beat the Rangers 8-3 on Friday, but have dropped 12 of their last 15 games. On the season overall, the Athletics have gone 56-66 to the run line, and the run total is 61-57-4 to the over/under.

J.T. Ginn will be making his 22nd start of the year and 25th appearance overall. The 27-year-old enters with an 8-6 record, a 3.41 ERA, and a 1.21 WHIP with 107 strikeouts and 13 homers allowed in 121.1 innings. Ginn has allowed three or fewer earned runs in 21 of his 24 appearances this season and is posting a 1.96 ERA across his past three starts. The right-hander has faced off with this Rangers lineup in 49 at-bats in his career. He has allowed a .265 batting average, a .797 OPS, and three home runs with seven strikeouts in these opportunities.

As an offensive unit, the Athletics are posting slash marks of .243/.317/.400 with a .717 OPS. They rank 14th in the league in hits, 19th in total runs, 13th in home runs, and eighth in strikeouts. Tyler Soderstrom has tallied 97 hits, along with 19 home runs and 56 RBIs. Nick Kurtz and Shea Langeliers each add 90-plus hits and 20-plus home runs, but both are currently on the injured list. Jeff McNiel contributes 87 hits and 39 RBIs, while Lawrence Butler, Jacob Wilson, and Henry Bolte each also play important roles.

Rangers at Athletics pick, best bet

If the Rangers want to earn a playoff opportunity, these are the types of matchups they cannot afford to drop. These goals are still well within reach as they are just three games back from the top spot in the division and a half-game back in the Wild Card race. But Texas has to take responsibility for their poor play across the board lately, which has led to the four-game losing streak they are riding into this matchup.

It has not been an ideal season for MacKenzie Gore, but these are the types of matchups he was brought to the Rangers for. The 27-year-old earned his first All-Star appearance last season with the Nationals. He is coming off back-to-back encouraging starts with just one earned run allowed across 11.1 innings pitched. The Rangers have won five of their past six games that Gore has started. While his metrics against this Athletics team aren’t strong, the sample size isn’t large enough to panic. Jeff McNeil is the only player with more than three hits and five at-bats against Gore.

The Athletics came alive for eight runs in Friday’s matchup, but did so on just nine hits; seven walks put the team in an undesirable spot. This is the most runs they have scored in a game since July 26, when they lost 11-8 to the Twins, and they have put up eight or more runs in only 13 games all year. They rank 19th in total runs this season, and Gore should find success limiting their offense.

The road team has covered the run line in 11 of the Athletics’ last 13 games, winning outright in five of their last six. The Athletics also have allowed more runs to opponents than any team in the league and rank 29th in opponent batting average. Count on a sense of urgency setting in for this Rangers team and on them capitalizing against this vulnerable opponent. Expect Gore to do a good enough job of putting the team in a position to win and for the Rangers’ offense to do enough to help their postseason outlook with a win.

Best bet: Texas Rangers Moneyline (-158)

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