Tampa Bay Rays vs Texas Rangers Prediction, Preview and Odds - 04/05/2025

Game Time: 7:05 pm ET, Saturday, April 5, 2025

Venue:  Globe Life Field, Arlington, TX

Where to Watch:  FDSFL, Victory+

DraftKings:  Moneyline odds:  Rays +150, Rangers -180; Over/Under:  7.5 runs

Bet365:  Moneyline odds:  Rays +150, Rangers -180; Over/Under:  7.5 runs

BetMGM:  Moneyline odds:  Rays +150, Rangers -180; Over/Under:  7.5 runs

Tampa Bay Rays:  4-2 (2nd place, AL East)

Texas Rangers:  5-2 (1st place, AL West)

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Tampa Bay Rays:  4-2 last 10

Texas Rangers:  5-2 last 10

The Rays are entering this series off a loss but won their 3-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates 2-1 in their last series. They enter this game with a 4-2 record overall and have a road record of 0-0. This is the 2nd game of a 3-game series with the Rangers on Saturday with the series opener still to be played on Friday. Their offense ranks 11th in the MLB with a .720 OPS. Zack Littell is their starting pitcher on Friday while Taj Bradley is making his start in this game on Saturday. He is 1-0 with a 3.00 ERA this season. His team won their only game this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 2 ER, 0 HR, and 0 BB with 7 Ks on 5 hits through 6 IP against the Colorado Rockies.

The Rangers are entering this series off a win and won their 3-game series against the Cincinnati Reds 2-1 in their last series. They enter this game with a 5-2 record overall and have a home record of 3-1. This is the 2nd game of a 3-game series with the Rays on Saturday with the 1st game of this series still to be played on Friday. Their offense ranks 23rd in the MLB with a .583 OPS. Tyler Mahle is their starting pitcher on Friday while Jacob deGrom is making his start in this game on Saturday. He is 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA this season. His team won their only game this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 0 earned runs, 0 homers, and 2 BB with 6 strikeouts on 2 hits through 5 innings played against the Boston Red Sox.

The current betting odds have the Rangers listed as a favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Rangers have looked good in their games this season with their 5-2 record overall which has them right at the top of the AL West with a good start to the season. They are also 3-1 in their home games this year. Meanwhile, the Rays have looked good in their games this season with their 4-2 record overall which has them right near the top of the AL East with a good start to the season. This will be their first series on the road though. They have Bradley starting in this game and he was good in his first start of the season, but the Rangers definitely have the better pitching matchup here. The Rangers have deGrom on the mound and he was great in his first start of the season, giving up no runs in 5 innings. The Rangers also have a really good bullpen that hasn't given up many runs this season. The Rays were putting up a lot of runs in their first few games and their offense has been a lot better than the Rangers, but they got shut down by Skenes in their last game of that series against the Pirates and the Rangers have the arms on staff to do the same to them here. The best way to place a bet here is on the Rangers to win this game. 

Rays Rangers Prediction:  Our MLB Pick for Saturday, April 5, 2025 (7:05 pm ET start time) is Rangers 4 Rays 2.

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Tampa Bay Rays: 32-34 (-9.8 units) on the moneyline against AL West opponents. 49-65 (-6.1 units) on the moneyline as an underdog of +100 or higher. 92-96 (-8.4 units) on the moneyline when playing against a team with a winning record. 12-3 UNDER on the road when playing against a top-level team (Win Pct. > 62%).

Texas Rangers: 42-30 (+13 units) on the moneyline against AL East opponents. 80-50 (+7.6 units) on the moneyline as a home favorite of -110 or higher. 74-47 (+16 units) on the moneyline vs. AL teams scoring 4.4 or less runs/game on the season. 31-23 UNDER vs. a team with a good bullpen whose ERA is 3.45 or better.

Tampa Bay Rays:  J. Lowe (RF) Ten Day IL - Oblique. A. Faedo (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Shoulder. H. Kim (SS) Ten Day IL - Shoulder. S. McClanahan (SP) Fifteen Day IL - Triceps. R. Palacios (2B) Ten Day IL - Finger. N. Lavender (RP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow.

Texas Rangers:  J. Jung (3B) Ten Day IL - Neck. J. Gray (SP) Sixty Day IL - Wrist. J. Sborz (RP) Sixty Day IL - Shoulder.

“Skenes is an interesting one, because he had a lot of [strikeouts] last year, but I think he's also [good] pitchability-wise, and getting ground balls and getting outs is part of his game, too. I think he did that well today. We were putting the ball in play a decent amount and just not getting too many hits." - Jonny DeLuca after their loss against the Pirates in their game on Wednesday.

“It’s pitchability. That’s what you’re seeing. He’s not trying to bull his way through lineups. He's throwing strikes. He is not putting guys on base. He's pounding the strike zone, not beating himself. It's a very, very competitive game. When you start putting guys on, you start beating yourself a little bit. He's not doing that.” - Bruce Bochy after his team’s win against the Reds in their game on Wednesday.

Yandy Díaz (R) DH

Brandon Lowe (L) 2B

Jake Mangum (S) LF

Junior Caminero (R) 3B

Jonathan Aranda (L) 1B

José Caballero (R) RF

Taylor Walls (S) SS

Ben Rortvedt (L) C

Jonny DeLuca (R) CF

Marcus Semien (R) 2B

Wyatt Langford (R) LF

Joc Pederson (L) DH

Adolis García (R) RF

Jake Burger (R) 1B

Josh Smith (L) SS

Jonah Heim (S) C

Leody Taveras (S) CF

Ezequiel Duran (R) 3B

Batting Average:  Jake Mangum (.533)

Hits:  Jake Mangum (8)

Home Runs:  Brandon Lowe (2)

RBI:  Brandon Lowe (6)

Stolen Bases:  Jake Mangum (3)

Wins:  Pete Fairbanks (1)

Saves:  Pete Fairbanks (1)

ERA:  Shane Baz (0.00)

Batting Average:  Kevin Pillar (.500)

Hits:  Wyatt Langford (7)

Home Runs:  Wyatt Langford (2)

RBI:  Adolis García (4)

Stolen Bases:  Leody Taveras (2)

Wins:  Jack Leiter (2)

Saves:  Luke Jackson (3)

ERA:  Jacob deGrom (0.00)

Managers:

Tampa Bay Rays: Kevin Cash (11th season)

Texas Rangers: Bruce Bochy (3rd season)