The Texas Rangers are cruising, winning 11 of their last 14, and will now head to Arizona to play a Diamondbacks team down on their luck over the last week.
Nathan Eovaldi has begun to round into form over his last two starts as Texas looks to keep its slim playoff hopes, while Zac Gallen has continued to showcase the highly volatile profile that has drawn the ire of many bettors this season.
With established, though flawed, arms on the hill and two hot offenses at the plate, setting up a Rangers-Diamondbacks same-game parlay for Tuesday, September 10, will be a fun exercise. Let's get into the best spots in my Rangers vs Diamondbacks MLB parlay.
Kenny Ducey's Rangers vs Diamondbacks MLB Parlay Picks
- Zac Gallen 6+ Strikeouts (+102)
- Wyatt Langford 2+ Total Bases (+110)
- Geraldo Perdomo To Record A Hit (-165)
Parlay Odds: +606 (FanDuel)
Remember to bet responsibly — this is a long shot for a reason.
Zac Gallen 6+ Strikeouts (+102)
Rangers vs Diamondbacks, 9:40 p.m. ET
The Rangers haven't exactly been a strikeout-prone team this season. And after striking out over 26% of the batters he faced in each of the last five seasons, Gallen has fallen short in that department this season.
That's the reason for Gallen's generous strikeout number here, but I think this is as good a spot as any to take a swing.
Texas has watched its punchout rate rise to 22.6% in the last 14 days, ranking 11th in the league in whiffs per swing. On top of that, it's chasing out of the zone at a clip that's around two points higher than its season average — an area where Gallen's been growing.
Gallen's chase rate has now rested firmly above 30% in the last two months as he continues to push toward the top quarter of the league in that area, and the strikeouts have really begun to pile up in recent outings.
He's hit this total in his last three starts, even if he's failed to record more than 18 outs in any of them. He should have a fair chance to keep this up.
Wyatt Langford 2+ Total Bases (+110)
Rangers vs Diamondbacks, 9:40 p.m. ET
The first hitter I want to take a look at here is Wyatt Langford. The rookie has been noticeably better against ground-ball pitchers, hitting .394 and slugging .676 in the split, and he's also been a man alive of late with a hit in each of his games this month up until Sunday's contest against the Angels.
In September, he's recorded 10 hits in 32 at-bats for a .313 average, going for extra bases five times. He should have a friendly matchup with the ground-balling Gallen, made better by excellent numbers against four-seam fastballs this year.
Gallen's issued one 46.1% of the time this season, leading what's been essentially a three-pitch mix, and it's been a huge problem for him considering he's allowed a .305 average on the delivery and has generated far fewer whiffs than last season. Langford is one of the best fastball hitters on the Rangers with a .261 xBA, which sits 47 points higher than his actual results, and a .458 xSLG which is 108 points higher.
Considering whiffs have been an issue for Langford, he should take pride in the diminishing number of swings and misses on the offering from Gallen and I like his chances of running into one and going for extra bases at a park with a spacious outfield.
Geraldo Perdomo to Record a Hit (-165)
Rangers vs Diamondbacks, 9:40 p.m. ET
Finally, I'm going to look to exploit a bad line here with Geraldo Perdomo.
He was bumped from premium lineup positioning when Ketel Marte returned from injury, but Arizona has still shown faith in him by hitting him second during Sunday's series finale in L.A. as Marte sat.
We aren't quite certain if Marte will sit again — it wouldn't seem so — but with plenty of struggling bats in this order, I wouldn't be surprised to see him hitting higher than eighth.
Even if he's down near the bottom, I like Perdomo's chances considering he'll face a fellow ground-ball arm in Eovaldi — a split where he's hit a cool .328 this season.
The contact maestro has hit .345 this month in eight games, and while he's not doing much in the power department, we just need him to reach base safely on a grounder through the infield or a line drive to the outfield.
