Rangers vs Astros Picks and Prediction – 7/12/2025

The Texas Rangers open a three-game series on the road Friday versus the Houston Astros. Texas is 45-48 following its 11-8 loss to the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday. Texas has lost two of the first three games of its four-game series with Los Angeles that concludes on Thursday. The Rangers are fourth in the American League West, 10 games behind the first-place Astros. Keep up to date with all the MLB action with our expert MLB picks.

Josh Smith is batting .287 with 82 hits and an on-base percentage of .361 to lead Texas and each of the three categories. Wyatt Langford leads in home runs with 14, and Adolis Garcia leads in RBI with 50. Texas is batting .230 with a .371 slugging percentage. On Friday, Texas will send Jack Leiter to the mound. The right-hander is 4-6 with a 4.32 ERA, 63 Ks, and 34 BBs.

The Houston Astros dropped to 55-38 following Wednesday’s 4-2 loss to the Cleveland Guardians. Houston was swept in its three-game series by Cleveland, and the Astros were outscored by the Guardians 21-13. Houston has won six of the last 10 and leads the American League West by 6 ½ games over the second-place Seattle Mariners.

Jeremy Pena is batting .322 with 102 hits and an on-base percentage of .378 to lead Houston in each of the three categories. Issac Paredes leads Houston in home runs with 19, and Jose Altuve leads Houston in RBI with 51. Houston is batting .260 with a .411 slugging percentage. On Friday, Houston will send Lance McCullers Jr to the mound. The right-hander is 2-3 with a 5.82 ERA, 44 Ks, and 24 BBs.

Houston wins at home on Friday, but the play here is OVER. The OVER has cashed in four of Texas’ last five, and in five of Houston’s last six. Texas starter Jack Leiter is coming off a below-average outing in which the right-hander allowed two runs on five hits across 3.2 innings. Houston starter Lance McCullers Jr is coming off a strong outing in which the right-hander allowed one run on four hits across six innings, but the OVER cashed. Final Score Prediction: Houston Astros win but our best play is OVER 7-5.