Texas Favored To Edge Mariners in Matchup of Top Teams in MLB
The Texas Rangers struck early and often to win the first game of the series with Seattle and took over first place in the American League West Division. The Rangers are listed by MLB betting lines today as the favorite again in the Sept. 23 matchup.
Seattle fell out of playoff position after seeing its three-game winning streak end. Seattle did cut an eight-run lead to three on Eugenio Suarez‘s RBI single in the ninth inning and brought the tying run to the plate before falling 8-5 as the game finished over the total.

Rookie Evan Carter homered for the second straight game for the Rangers as Texas has scored 23 runs over the last two games. Keep an eye on the 8½-run total since 46 of the home games played by the Rangers this season have finished over the total.
Each of the last three games between the Mariners and Rangers finished over the total with Texas scoring 36 times to win all three games. This will be the 11th straight meeting between Seattle and Texas that has the home team as the favorite.
When looking at the MLB playoff odds, Texas is priced at -325 in the odds to make the playoffs with Seattle coming in at -145.
Starting Pitchers
Logan Gilbert (13-6, 3.77 ERA) vs Jordan Montgomery (9-11, 7.48)
Gilbert is 1-1 with an ERA of 5.71 ERA over his last three starts and he has allowed four home runs in his last two outings.
Gilbert, who can establish a career-high with his 14th win on Saturday, allowed three hits and two runs with 10 strikeouts in 6⅔ innings in his only start against Texas this season. He was the losing pitcher in the 2-1 win by the Rangers on May 8.
Montgomery is 3-2 with a 3.29 ERA in nine starts with the Rangers since being acquired from the St. Louis Cardinals. In his last two starts, he has allowed nine hits and one run with 11 strikeouts in 14 innings.
The last time Montgomery faced Seattle was in 2021 when he surrendered four hits, two home runs and three runs in 6⅔ innings in a 4-0 loss.
Even though Texas is 1-5 in the last six games started by Montgomery, when looking at the MLB picks for Sept. 23, Texas is favored to keep on rolling against its division rival.
Mariners vs Rangers Betting Lines
Seager Could Be Best MLB Prop Bet
Corey Seager has feasted on Seattle pitching this season as he is 7-for-12 with three doubles, a home run and six RBIs. He has also scored six times and he is priced at -115 to score a run on Saturday. That is among the best prop bets tonight especially after he hit a home run in the series opener.
Seager has seven home runs and 14 extra-base hits in 20 games played in September. He is tied for seventh in the majors and is second among American League batters with 18 runs scored during the month.
Ty France leads the Mariners with four runs scored versus the Rangers so take a look at the +145 odds for France to score on Saturday as well.
France was 0-for-5 in the series opener to drop his batting average in September to .194.
MLB Pick: Corey Seager to score a run (-115)
Texas Looks for More Home Cooking
Texas trails only the Tampa Bay Rays among American League teams with 48 home wins.
Montgomery was picked up for games like this and is coming off back-to-back strong outings. Add in the fact that the Rangers are fourth in the majors with a .462 slugging percentage in September and the Rangers are 9-for-19 with runners in scoring position in the last two games and there are plenty of reasons to roll with the Rangers in this matchup.
When looking at the MLB odds, the Rangers are 41-25 against the run line as a home favorite and Texas has a 59-43 record when listed as a favorite this season.
Seattle is 31-42 when facing teams with winning records this season.
When it comes to the MLB playoff odds, Texas (+1400) is tied for the fifth-best odds to win the World Series. Seattle comes in sixth in the championship odds at +1600.
MLB Pick: Texas Rangers (-113)
Mariners vs Rangers Game Information
• Game: Mariners (84-69) vs Rangers (85-68)
• Location: Globe Life Field, Arlington, TX
• Day/time: Sept. 23, 7:05 p.m. ET
• Mariners vs Rangers Live Stream: MLB.tv