The Texas Rangers enter Game 2 of the 2023 World Series on Saturday with loads of momentum following Adolis Garcia’s walk-off home run in the series opener.
Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Merrill Kelly (2-1, 2.65 ERA in the postseason) will have to subdue Garcia and Corey Seager in order to help the Diamondbacks gain a split of the first two contests in Arlington, Texas.
Seager tied the opener with a two-run homer in the ninth inning and Garcia went deep in the 11th to give the Rangers a 6-5 victory on Friday.
“Just excitement. This is fun. This is playoffs. This is kind of what it’s all about,” said Seager, who has launched three of his four homers this postseason over the past five games.
QUICK PICK
Rangers right-hander Jordan Montgomery takes the mound for the first time since picking up the win in relief in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series on Monday. He has been excellent in the postseason, posting a 3-0 record with a 2.16 ERA. With Texas’ big bats on fire, the Rangers are well positioned to maintain home-field advantage.
Prediction: Rangers 6, Diamondbacks 4
ODDS TRENDS
The Rangers opened the World Series as -175 favorites by BetMGM to win the title, and those odds shorted to -300 following their dramatic Game 1 victory. The story is similar at DraftKings, where Texas’ title odds shortened from -170 to -295 entering Saturday’s game.
The Diamondbacks’ moneyline has again been attractive to the public, however, with Arizona backed by 64 percent of the moneyline bets and 54 percent of the money at +125 at BetMGM. The Rangers, meanwhile, have drawn 63 and 64 percent of the spread-line action as 1.5-run favorites.
PROP PICK
Montgomery Over 3.5 Strikeouts (-135 at DraftKings): The Over has drawn lopsided action with 98 percent of the bets and 97 percent of the money wagered at the book. In his four starts this postseason, Montgomery has averaged four strikeouts, highlighted by six at Houston in 6 1/3 scoreless innings to open the ALCS.
THE NEWS
Keeping Seager, Garcia and company under wraps will be the responsibility of Kelly, who has sandwiched two strong outings around a less-than-desirable appearance.
Kelly, 35, scattered three hits over 6 1/3 scoreless innings in an 11-2 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 1 of the National League Division Series on Oct. 7 before allowing four runs — including three homers — in a 10-0 setback to the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 2 of the NL Championship Series on Oct. 17. He rebounded six days later to permit just one run on three hits in five innings of a 5-1 victory over the Phillies in Game 6 of the NLCS.
Kelly fared well in his lone career start against Texas, yielding one run on three hits in 7 2/3 innings in a 4-1 win on July 28, 2020, in Arlington.
Montgomery, 30, tossed 2 1/3 scoreless innings in Texas’ 11-4 win at Houston on Monday.
“I mean, coming out of the bullpen when you’re not used to it, you just pitched, is tiring,” Montgomery said on Friday. “But back on my five-day (routine), so I’ll be good.”
Montgomery has faced Arizona just twice in his career — and both starts came this season, with wildly different results. He surrendered seven runs on 10 hits in four innings of an 8-7 setback on April 18 while pitching for the St. Louis Cardinals. He then scattered four hits over eight scoreless innings in a no-decision on Aug. 21 while competing for Texas.
Montgomery would be wise to pitch carefully to Ketel Marte, who ripped an RBI double in the fifth inning on Friday to extend his career postseason hitting streak to 17 games. The streak is tied for the all-time record, matching Hank Bauer (1956-58), Derek Jeter (1998-99) and Manny Ramirez (2003-04).
KEY STAT
Garcia’s eighth homer of the playoffs extended his RBI total to 22, eclipsing David Freese (2011) for the most in one postseason in major league history.
THEY SAID IT
Kelly will have plenty of family in attendance on Saturday.
“All my roots are here,” he said. “My mom’s from Beaumont, (Texas,) which is right on the border of Louisiana. My dad is from Brownsville, which is about as far south Texas as you can go. My grandmother is actually coming over from Beaumont.
“So it’s cool to see the family support, especially with being at home and having my family and my wife’s family both there. … We probably don’t have much of the state of Texas behind us, but at least I know there’s at least my family that’s rooting for us for sure.”
–Field Level Media