Nippert, Rangers visit K-Rod, Angels of Anaheim

The Los Angeles Angels (81-52) can move one step closer to locking up the AL West crown in their Friday night MLB betting match-up when they hook up with the Texas Rangers (66-69) for the second game of their four game set. The Halos knocked off the Rangers 7-5 on Thursday night, behind a 5-run seventh inning.

Francisco Rodriguez made it interesting giving up two base runners in the 9th, but locked down his ML-best 51st save of the season. Starting pitcher Jon Garland had a rocky first inning, giving up four runs, but threw a very strong next seven innings to notch his 12th win of the year.

Taking the mound for the Halos for the 27th time in ’08 will be Cy Young candidate Ervin Santana. The fire-balling righty is 13-5 with a 3.41 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. His K/9 ratio is a fantastic 8.97, the fourth best mark for starting pitchers in the American League. Though Santana’s numbers are exceptional, of the regular starting pitchers in the Angels rotation, baseball bettors have had less luck with Santana than all but one of his teammates.

Sportsbettors are only at +$17 on the year when the righty is on the mound. In total, the Halos have netted the fourth best mark in baseball for their MLB bettors. However, watch out for when they play at Angels Stadium, as LA is actually just a shade over the break-even line in their home games this year. Santana has pitched 12 games against the Rangers in his career. The Halos are 7-5 in those twelve efforts, but are a perfect 3-0 when Santana takes the rubber against Texas at Angels Stadium.

In this Friday night baseball betting match-up, the Rangers will counter with 27-year old RHP Dustin Nippert. It will only be the second start of the season for the righty, who gave up seven runs in four innings against Tampa Bay in his only other start on August 17th. His numbers have been nothing to write home about, as Nippert sports a 7.83 ERA in 43.2 innings pitched this season.

For his career, he has thrown 7.2 innings against the Halos, giving up seven runs in two appearances. If he’s got one thing on his side, it’s that the Rangers have been an excellent road team this year for MLB bettors. While on the road, Texas bettors have cleared +$750 for the season, the third best mark in the majors.

In this AL West rivalry, the Angels hold a 7-5 edge in their 12 meetings this season. Texas is now 2-2 in Anaheim this year, and is 5-5 over the course of the last two years. In each of the ten games though, the Rangers were underdogs of at least +140. Runline bettors should note that Texas is 14-5 in their L/19 games with the Halos when you factor in the +1.5.

Oddsmakers have made the Angels lofty -245 home favorites in tonight’s online baseball betting affair, with the ‘total’ set at 9.5 under -125. BetUS Sportsbook is your home for all of your MLB betting action, so be sure to login to your account and get your MLB wagers down before the first pitch in this clash between AL West rivals.