ERA Leaders Battle In Texas

Rays vs. Rangers, 8:05 ET

We had another 1-1 day yesterday. I won't say the loss on the Cubs was a good one, because Justin Steele fell apart. He ended up allowing six earned runs over his five innings. The win was fairly sweatless in a game between the Mariners and the Tigers. Tonight, we shift the focus to the beginning of a new series as the Rays take on the Rangers in Texas.

If any team needed the All-Star Break, it was the Rays. They had a long losing streak right before the streak and have come back to face the Royals - which means easy wins, and they took two of three there. If that helps them hit the reset button and regather some of that momentum that they've lost, it could go a long way to propelling them to the top of the division. One of the best pitchers in the league is taking the ball for them tonight. Shane McClanahan is coming off of the injured list to take the ball for the Rays. He is 11-1 on the season with a 2.53 ERA and 101 strikeouts. He has only had two starts where he has allowed four earned runs this season, everything else has been fewer. I do have a few concerns - he allowed a home run in five of his past six starts, and if the back injury isn't full healed this could be an issue as he was only able to go three innings in both of his past two outings. He hasn't pitched since June 30th though, so the rest could help, but if he isn't full healed, he could look bad in the return.

Shane McClanahan returns from the IL tonight to take on the Rangers. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports

The Rangers are the biggest surprise in baseball to me. This season they have been able to climb to first place on the backs of the best hitting in baseball. There also needs to be a hat tip to the pitching staff that has done very well and responded well to losing Jacob deGrom for the season. Getting the most out of your starters is key for the Rangers - even if their hitters were doing well this season, that could all be negated if the Rangers pitchers didn't hold up their end of the bargain. Dane Dunning is one of the guys that is certainly doing his part for the Rangers. Dunning sports a 2.84 ERA and has been consistent both at home and on the road. He did struggle in his last start, going just 5.2 innings and allowing four earned runs. Like McClanahan, he allowed four earned runs just twice this season. He has been awesome against the Rays in his career holding them to just three hits over 20 at-bats.

Nine runs in this games seems... high? The under seems to be the best thing to play in this one. I also like the Rays to win the game, but I am a little cautious about playing McClanahan here as he returns from the DL. I will probably sprinkle on him through five innings rather than the full game. I am taking under 9 runs in this game though.

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