The Rangers won the American League West by two games last season. The margin could have been greater had they solved Seattle ace Felix Hernandez, who won all five of his starts against Texas.
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ODDS ANALYSIS
The Mariners are flying low this season. The expectations surrounding the club last year and the resulting disappointment that was the 2015 season made sure of that. There’s been a change in the front office, a change in field managers and a change in team chemistry, making Seattle an underdog pick in the AL West. The Texas teams are all the rage in the division after surprising postseason runs.
Scott Servais, Seattle’s ninth manager since 2002, has never managed or even coached in the big leagues and could have a learning curve. The M’s have also struggled to score enough runs to be considered true contenders. Texas made a surprise charge last season to capture the division title, and many feel the Rangers could be better this season with a full year of Cole Hamels and the return of Yu Darvish to the rotation.
Bookmaker.eu has the Mariners pegged at +445 to win the division, behind the defending champion Rangers at +264 and Houston Astros, the favorite at +116.
PITCHING MATCHUP
Felix Hernandez is 6-0 with a 1.49 ERA in eight Opening Day starts, and he’ll start his club-record ninth opener Monday in Texas, a team he dominated in 2015. Hernandez went 5-0 with a 1.83 ERA against the Rangers last season.
The Rangers counter with lefty Cole Hamels, who adjusted nicely to the AL after being acquired from Philadelphia, where he had spent his entire career. Hamels was 7-1 with a 3.66 ERA in 12 starts for Texas. He was 4-0 in his seven starts in Arlington notching 56 strikeouts and 51.2 innings pitched.
QUOTE TO NOTE
“We wanted to get more athletic, better defensively, strike out less and create more havoc on the bases. I do not want us to be comfortable to play against.” – Mariners manager Scott Servais.
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With a retooled roster, Servais wants the Mariners to make life uncomfortable for their opponents this season. Specifically, Servais wants his team to steal bases, take the extra base and push the action. The M’s flashed some of that play during the spring and had a Cactus League game with six stolen bases against the Rangers. “There are other ways to score runs, and we have to do things a little differently to be consistent, because you can’t rely on the home run every night,” the new manager said.
PROP TALK
Of all the players on the Mariners roster, Nelson Cruz is the one with the most history with Scott Servais, who played a big part in Cruz finding his stroke as a power hitter. Back in 2007, Cruz was sent to Triple-A by the Rangers and Servais immediately went to work on a new batting stance and approach for Cruz. The approach worked. Two seasons later Cruz hit 33 home runs and now has a streak of seven straight MLB seasons with at least 22 homers, including a career-high 44 in 2015. Now Cruz gets to put all that power in play for Servais, who is entering his first season as a manager.
ANALYSIS AND PREDICTION
The Rangers may be better this season than their division-winning squad from 2015, but like many teams they struggled when facing Seattle ace Felix Hernandez. Texas’ path the AL West would have been much smoother if Hernandez hadn’t stood in the way. King Felix won all five of his starts against the Rangers last season with a 1.83 ERA and a measly .168 batting average against across 34.1 innings. Of course past success guarantees nothing for the future, but Hernandez is one of the best in the business and there really is no reason to believe he can’t replicate this success.
Seattle 4, Texas 2
BookMaker will be the first online sportsbook to send out the baseball odds for this marquee matchup. Since this game can be seen by anyone with a TV, BookMaker will have a multitude of wagering options available for it. Outside of the normal lines, you can gamble on real-time moneylines, player props and inning totals. Live betting is open during every commercial break!
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