A pair of MLB’s best hitters go head-to-head when the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros play at 8:10 p.m. ET on Friday, at Daikin Park. Josh Jung has a .325 batting average (seventh in league) for the Rangers, while Yordan Alvarez ranks eighth at .321. Jack Leiter (1-3, 4.85 ERA) will start for the Rangers, who are 21-22 this season and third in the AL West. Spencer Arrighetti (4-1, 1.88 ERA) is expected to start for the Astros, who are 17-28 and fourth in the AL West.
How to watch Texas Rangers vs. Houston AstrosRangers vs. Astros odds
Injury reportsRangers
Wyatt Langford: 10 Day IL (Forearm), Cody Freeman: 10 Day IL (Back ), Josh Smith: 10 Day IL (Glute), Robert Garcia: 15 Day IL (Shoulder), Chris Martin: 15 Day IL (Shoulder), Carter Baumler: 15 Day IL (Ribs), Luis Curvelo: 15 Day IL (Biceps), Jordan Montgomery: 60 Day IL (Elbow), Cody Bradford: 60 Day IL (Elbow), Nathan Eovaldi: day-to-day (Side)
Astros
Joey Loperfido: 10 Day IL (Quadricep), Carlos Correa: 10 Day IL (Ankle), Jake Meyers: 10 Day IL (Oblique), Taylor Trammell: 10 Day IL (Groin), Jeremy Pena: 10 Day IL (Knee), Yainer Diaz: 10 Day IL (Abdominal), Nate Pearson: 15 Day IL (Elbow), Bennett Sousa: 15 Day IL (Elbow), Hayden Wesneski: 60 Day IL (Elbow), Hunter Brown: 60 Day IL (Shoulder), Ronel Blanco: 60 Day IL (Elbow), Brandon Walter: 60 Day IL (Elbow), Cristian Javier: 60 Day IL (Shoulder), Josh Hader: 60 Day IL (Biceps)
Stats to know
Texas’ Jung is slashing .325/.372/.510 this season with five home runs, 20 RBIs and an OPS of .882. He has a 15.9% strikeout rate and a 6.1% walk rate in 164 plate appearances, and he has scored 19 total runs.
In 181 plate appearances, Brandon Nimmo has slashed .281/.359/.425 this season. He has hit four long balls and driven in 12 runs with a strikeout rate of 19.3% and a walk rate of 9.4%. He has come around to score 18 times.
Alvarez is hitting for a .321 BA, .429 OBP and .642 SLG with a 15.7% strikeout rate and a 14.1% walk rate. His OPS is 1.072, which ranks 2nd in MLB, and he has scored 29 runs. In 198 plate appearances, he has hit 14 home runs (5th in MLB) and driven in 30 runs (8th in MLB).
In 183 plate appearances, Christian Walker has posted an 18.6% strikeout rate and a 9.3% walk rate while slashing .270/.344/.515 with 10 home runs (17th in MLB), 29 RBIs (13th in MLB) and 26 runs scored.
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