Henry Roldán
The 2023 Major League Baseball season is about to kick off this Thursday with a full day of games, including a showdown between the Phillies vs Rangers.
After clinching a wild card spot in the National League, the Philadelphia Phillies came close to winning it all, but fell short in the World Series against the Astros. Meanwhile, the Texas Rangers finished fourth in the American League West with a less-than-stellar record of 68-94.
Without further ado, at JefeBet, bring you all the information, the game preview, predictions, and betting odds for the Philadelphia Phillies vs Texas Rangers matchup.
Predictions and Betting Preview for the Phillies vs Rangers MLB Regular Season Game 1 on March 30, 2023
- Where: Globe Life Field, Arlington, Texas.
- When: Thursday, March 30, 2023, 4:05 PM E.T.
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Betting on the Philadelphia Phillies
- 2023 Season Record: 0-0.
After a surprising postseason in which they defeated National League favorites like the Braves and Padres, the Phillies are looking for revenge with a highly competitive team.
Despite the recent blow of Rhys Hoskins’ season-ending injury and the expected return of Bryce Harper in June or July, Rob Thompson’s team is still one of the top contenders in the league.
In fact, when talking about this team, we have to start with a rotation that includes two great pitchers like Aaron Nola and Zack Wheeler, along with Taijuan Walker, Bailey Falter, and Ranger Suárez, who will be back in mid-April.
When it comes to the bullpen, Thompson’s got some new firepower in the form of Craig Kimbrel as their closer, while Seranthony Dominguez, Geovany Soto, and José Alvarado should add some much-needed depth to a squad that has struggled last season.
Moving on to the offense, losing Hoskins and Harper is a huge blow. That is why it is crucial to see what the new star of the team, Trea Turner, can do, along with some dangerous bats like Kyle Schwarber, Nick Castellanos, and J.T. Realmuto.
In this game between the Phillies vs Rangers, Nola will take the mound. He’s an experienced pitcher who finished fourth in the National League Cy Young voting last year after working 205.0 innings, striking out 235 batters, with an ERA of 3.25, two complete games, and a 2.58 FIP.
Starting pitcher: Austin Nola (0-0, 0.00 ERA).
Betting on the Texas Rangers
- 2023 Season Record: 0-0.
Bruce Bochy’s arrival at the Rangers’ helm ahead of this Phillies vs Rangers matchup fills an organization, that has heavily invested since last campaign, with hope, but that was not close to seeing the merits of that bet on the field in 2022.
Despite the additions of Corey Seager and Marcus Siemen, the Texas team was practically eliminated halfway through the season due to a pitching that ended with a collective ERA of 4.22.
However, performance should change drastically this year, at least with a starting rotation that will now have two-time National League Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom as its ace. Second in line will be Nathan Eovaldi, followed by Martín Pérez, Jon Gray, and Andrew Heaney.
In Texas, the doubt lies in the team’s bullpen, which ended last season with a 3.72 ERA and sixth in the league with 264 walks. They brought in experienced pitchers Ian Kennedy and Will Smith to reinforce it, but beyond those two and José Leclerc, the other arms are a big question mark.
As for their offensive lineup, there weren’t many new additions besides Robbie Grossman and Brad Miller. The heart of the lineup is made up of Seager, Siemen, Adolis García, and Nathaniel Lowe.
For this game, the starting pitcher couldn’t be anyone other than deGrom, one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball. If he’s healthy, he’s a strong candidate for the American League Cy Young award. Due to several injuries last year, he only made 11 starts with the Mets, posting a 3.08 ERA and striking out 102 batters with only eight walks in 64.1 innings.
Starting pitcher: Jacob deGrom (0-0, 0.00 ERA).
JefeBet Prediction
In this game, we’re in for another top-notch pitching duel, which makes us believe that there will be few runs scored and the Under could de hit, despite the low run line in Las Vegas.
Nola will be making his first career start against the Rangers, but the right-handed is coming off a 3.25 ERA season, and in games against American League teams, his lifetime ERA is 3.49 in 26 starts.
Meanwhile, DeGrom is a familiar face to the Phillies from his time with the Mets. In his last eight starts against them, the right-handed player has pitched less than six innings only once and has never allowed more than three earned runs, striking out at least 10 batters three times.
Adding to those performances, the Under has been met in five of the last seven matchups between the two teams in Texas, while the Under has hit in 10 of the last 14 games.
Prediction: Under (PHI 2 – TEX 4).
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