San Diego vs Texas: MLB Odds Preview

The races in the western divisions in the American and National League are seeing on or two teams take control as they open up on the rest. The San Diego Padres and the Texas Rangers are both in danger of being left behind, which makes their interleague match-up to end the first half of the season such an important one. Game 2 of the 3-game series will take place in Texas on Saturday night, and we have a full betting analysis complete with MLB odds.

San Diego Padres vs Texas Rangers: MLB Odds Preview

Time: Saturday, 9:05 p.m. ETVenue: Globe Life Park in Arlington, TexasNational TV: NoneOpening line: Padres -105, Rangers -105 (8.5)  The San Diego Padres (39-48) have seen their season fall apart over the past couple of weeks, as they have hit a poor run of form that has seen them drop 10 games off the pace in the NL West. They have failed to win 3 straight series now, and are on a 5-game losing skid that includes a 3-game sweep at the hands of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Prior to this recent trip, the Padres had a better record on the road than they did at home, but they now find themselves 5 games under .500 away from home. The Padres have a number of issues to be concerned with, but their defense, which has given up 45 unearned runs, is at the top of the list. Unless they can find a way to correct things in the second half, they could see their season come to an end before the end of August. James Shields (7-3, 3.88 ERA) will start for the Padres, who have failed to win the last 6 games that he has started.The Texas Rangers (41-44) have been experiencing a run of form that is very similar to what the Padres are going through right now. The Rangers are 3-7 in their last 10 games, and have fallen 6.5 games off the pace in the AL West. Unlike the Padres, though, they look set to be able to solve what has been their biggest issue to this point. Their starting rotation was going very well before being hit by the injury bug. Matt Harrison, Martin Perez, and Derek Holland will all be available after the All-Star Break, and Josh Hamilton will also be back sooner rather than later. While the Rangers are currently a good ways off the pace, they are getting the help that could well get them right back into the hunt. Colby Lewis (8-4, 4.83 ERA) will start for Texas on Saturday and will be looking to bounce back from a pretty awful effort in his last start.

Key Betting Trends

Texas is 0-5 SU in its last 5 gamesThe total has gone OVER in 4 of Texas’s last 5 gamesTexas is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games at homeThe total has gone OVER in 4 of Texas’s last 5 games at homeTexas is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games when playing San DiegoSan Diego is 0-5 SU in its last 5 gamesThe total has gone UNDER in 5 of San Diego’s last 6 gamesSan Diego is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games on the roadThe total has gone UNDER in 5 of San Diego’s last 6 games on the roadSan Diego is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games when playing Texas

My Betting Prediction

Both of these teams are on the slide right now, but I think the Rangers are better equipped to get out of it, which is why I think they will win this one.Sources:ESPN.com: http://espn.go.com/mlb/player/_/id/28474/james-shieldsYahooSports.com: http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/players/6893/