Texas Rangers at Seattle Mariners Series Preview

The Rangers are in Seattle for the first time this season, and once again they have a four game series.

Kolby Allard will make his first start of the 2021 season after being in the bullpen all season. The Rangers have recently run into a few of injuries to their starting rotation, it’s likely to be a spot start but nothing has been officially determined yet. Allard has made four appearances against Seattle in his career, three starts and one three-inning relief outing earlier this season. His two starts in 2020 were not great, He pitched a total 4.1 innings and gave up 12 runs on 10 hits and and six walks.

Texas will face Chris Flexen again, who went 6.1 innings and gave up four runs on 10 hits and a walk at the beginning of the month. However, Flexen is coming off a really awful start against the San Diego Padres in which he pitched 1.2 innings and gave up eight runs on 10 hits.

Friday’s matchup will be Jordan Lyles and Justus Sheffield. The Rangers did good against Sheffield in the last series, they scored seven runs, five earned, on 10 hits in his five innings of work.

This will be the first time Lyles faces Seattle this season. In his career, he has made nine appearances, seven starts, against the Mariners and is 1-4 in 41.2 innings with a 6.48 ERA and 1.39 WHIP.

Mike Foltynewics and Justin Dunn will start Saturday night’s game. Foltynewics got a no-decision in his last start against Seattle, although he pitched well enough to get the win. He went 6.2 innings and gave up four runs on six hits and a walk. He’s also coming off his best outing of the season where he pitched seven scoreless innings against the Houston Astros.

Texas hasn’t faced Dunn yet this season, however, they faced him three times last season. He has a 2.00 ERA and 1.11 WHIP in 18 innings pitched against the Rangers. In eight starts so far this season, he has a 3.40 ERA and 1.26 WHIP in 39.2 innings. In his last start, he gave up just three walks and a solo home run to the Padres in five innings of work.

Wrapping up the series on Sunday, Hyeon-Jong Yang and Yusei Kikuchi will take the mound. Yang hasn’t faced Seattle this season but after his last outing in Anaheim where he gave up seven runs on five hits and three walks in 3.1 innings, he’s looking for a bounce back.

Kikuchi has a 3.00 ERA in his career against Texas. He’s made three starts but has only pitched a total of 12 innings against the Rangers. He’s had five straight quality starts this season, even after being pulled after six innings in his last start against Oakland for back cramps. He has a 4.02 ERA and 1.09 WHIP in nine starts this season.