The Texas Rangers (29-17) take their league-best offense on the road to face the Pittsburgh Pirates (24-22) at PNC Park on Monday to open a three-game Interleague series. The Rangers are playing their first of nine games on the road after closing out a productive six-game homestand (4-2).
They are coming off a three-game sweep of the Rockies, taking the finale 13-3 on Sunday at Globe Life Field. Corey Seager was 3 for 5 with a home run and a double. He scored two runs and drove in three. Nathaniel Lowe also went 3 for 5 with two doubles and one run.
The Pirates are in the midst of a six-game homestand. They lost two of three against the Diamondbacks in their last series, dropping the finale 8-3 on Sunday at PNC Park.
Connor Joe went 1 for 3 with two runs.The teams are meeting for the first time since May 8, 2019, when the Rangers avoided a two-game series sweep with a 9-6 win at PNC Park.
ON THE MOUND
Dane Dunning (4-0, 1.72 ERA) is in line to start for Texas. The righty allowed one run over six innings in his last start, a 7-4 road win over the Braves on Tuesday.
He earned the win, giving up six hits while striking out four. Righty Luis Ortiz (0-2, 3.60 ERA) gets the ball for Pittsburgh. In his last start on Tuesday, Ortiz took the loss on the road against the Tigers. He threw three innings and gave up four runs (3 ER) on seven hits, striking out three and walking four in the 4-0 defeat.
AT THE PLATE
The Texas offense is averaging 6.5 runs per game for the season, best in the league, with a slash line of .270/.340/.449. Adolis Garcia leads the team in OPS at .871. The right fielder is slashing .259/.323/.548 with 14 home runs, 49 RBIs, and 39 runs over 45 games.
Over the last five games, though, Texas has averaged 8.6 runs a game while performing better across the board (.324/.392/.588). Against righties like Ortiz this season, the Rangers have a .768 OPS, fifth highest in the league.
Marcus Semien is the team’s best hitter against right-handers with a .910 OPS in 131 at-bats. Pittsburgh is slashing .246/.325/.403 for the season and averaging 4.4 runs per game. Four Pirates hitters have an OPS of .800 or better, led by Joe (.862).
The left fielder has five home runs, 14 RBIs, and 23 runs scored with a slash line of .260/.350/.512. The Bucs have a .702 OPS against right-handers in 2023. With a .919 OPS over 88 at-bats, Jack Suwinski has been their best hitter against right-handers.
HOME AND AWAY
Texas is 13-9 in road games in 2023, scoring 6.1 runs per game while allowing 3.8 runs. Pittsburgh has gone 11-11 at PNC Park this season, averaging 4.0 runs per game while surrendering 4.9. In eight meetings at PNC Park, Texas is 5-3 with an average scoreline of 5.0-4.0.
STANDINGS UPDATE
The Rangers lead the AL West by two games over the Astros. The Pirates lead the NL Central by zero games over the Pirates.
SportsTips’ MLB Pick:
Texas Rangers (-135)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
