Two of the Big Boys in the AL West – Texas at Seattle

Texas Rangers (47-37) at Seattle Mariners (44-41)
Friday, July 10 10:10pm EST
TV: FSH, FSHW

BetOnline MLB betting odds:  Rangers -125, Mariners +105, Total 8.5

Right-handers go at it tonight, as Scott Feldman (7-2, 3.91 ERA), who has given the Rangers a big lift this season, goes up against former first-round draft pick Brandon Morrow (0-3, 5.05 ERA) of the Mariners.

Here are some of the MLB Baseball betting trends as they relate to this matchup:

• TEX has won seven of its last nine games
• TEX has won four of its last six road games
• SEA has won nine of its last 12 home games

In the HEAD-TO-HEAD sports betting trends:

• TEX has won five of the last six meetings
• TEX has won six of the last eight meetings as the road team
• Four of the last five meetings in Seattle have gone OVER the total

The Rangers have hung tough right at the top of the American League West because this season they have added gotten pitching from their starters, without really making any significant deals. They are a half game ahead of the Los Angeles Angels in the American League West, based in part on winning two out of three games against the Rangers in Anaheim. They lost the opening game of this four-game series to Seattle, 3-1, as Franklin Gutierrez accounted for all three Mariner runs with a homer. Felix Hernandez, an All-Star pitcher, picked up his ninth win of the season.

Texas is currently sixth in the American League in scoring, averaging five runs a game. Seattle is 14th and last in that category (3.9 runs per game), but they have also given up less runs than anyone (4.2 per contest), and that figure is only 3.9 at Safeco Field, where they have won nine of their last twelve. Seattle is currently 3.5 games behind Texas in the AL West race.

Scott Feldman has gone six innings in each of his last four starts, and has yet to complete seven innings this season. On May 12 he went 6-1/3 innings against the Mariners and gave up only one run. he has a 3.25 ERA as a starter, and the opposition is batting just .230 against the converted reliever. One of the interesting things surrounding Feldman is that Ichiro Suzuki, who once again leads the American League in hitting, is only 1-for-12 (.083) lifetime against Feldman.

Brandon Morrow, who has often been the subject of great dispute among Seattle fans for the way he has been handled by the organization, will get the start. He was strong in his last start, striking out seven and allowing just three runs in six innings against the Red Sox. He does not have a victory yet, but he seems to be getting more comfortable as a member of the rotation. There has been some reshuffling of the Seattle staff since Erik Bedard came back; Jason Vargas has just been sent to the minors until after the All-Star break, and Garrett Olson might be used in relief. That opens things up for Morrow, who has mostly been used in relief since being with the big club.

Texas has been so strong in the West because it has done a good job beating its division rivals. The Rangers are 17-6, which is the best division winning percentage in the majors, and that will obviously loom important as the season progresses. Still, you have to take a long look at the Mariners as a home underdog, and we think Morrow has possibilities, if they can settle him into one role. Let’s go with the M’s at +105 in the BetOnline American League baseball betting odds.

JAY’S PLAY:  SEATTLE (+105) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)