Houston Astros at Texas Rangers

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
HOU	0	0	0	1	0	0	3	1	0	5	8	1
TEX	0	3	0	0	1	0	0	1	1	6	11	0

This one was set up as a bounce-back spot for both rotations. Cristian Javier took the ball for his first start since April 8, when he threw just 1 inning in Colorado — a small, uncertain sample after a long layoff. Across the diamond, MacKenzie Gore was looking to answer for his last outing, a 5-inning, 7-earned-run beating against the Angels that dropped him to 5-8 on the year.

Show fees

FINAL

Spread

ML

Total

Astros(47-50)

WLLWL

5

+1.5-156+127o8.5-127

Rangers(48-47)

LWWLW

6

-1.5+153-130u8.5+125

Best BetAstros +113

Postgame

The pick missed — Houston fought to a 5-5 tie into the ninth before Texas walked it off, exactly the late-game vulnerability that was the risk.

Pregame

Backing Houston here means betting on the bats bailing out a rotation question mark, since Javier was working back from a near month-long layoff with just 1 inning of recent game action. Texas closes as the favorite on the board and the price reflects a real form edge for the home club, but the Astros have shown they can score in bunches even when the ballgame gets messy.

The lineup card told its own story before first pitch. Jacob deGrom was already off the Rangers' Sunday ledger with a mild left glute strain, pushing more weight onto Gore, and things got worse in real time — Houston center fielder Brice Matthews crashed into the outfield wall chasing a Josh Jung fly ball early on and didn't finish the game, a fresh knee issue for a Houston roster that's already without Carlos Correa for the season.

Cristian Javier

(0-1)·9.37 ERA

Apr 8 @ Rockies

ND

1.0IP

1ER

1K

0BB

20P

07/12 Lineup

MacKenzie Gore

(6-8)·4.82 ERA

Jul 8 vs Angels

L

5.0IP

7ER

7K

1BB

90P

07/12 Lineup

Texas took a bullpen hit of its own Sunday, placing reliever Chris Martin on the 15-day IL with a shoulder impingement — one more name off a relief corps that was already thin. Neither club was walking into this rubber match at full strength, and it showed in how much both bullpens ended up doing.

Houston clawed a share of the lead with a 3-run seventh to tie it at 4, then traded another run apiece in the eighth to push it to 5-5. But Texas had the last word. The Rangers scratched across the winning run in the bottom of the ninth to walk it off, 6-5, snapping a game that both offenses had to grind for after neither starter made it out unscathed.

Houston Astros

(47-50)

Jul 11W@ Rangers9-3

Jul 11L@ Rangers3-7

Jul 8L@ Nationals2-8

Jul 7W@ Nationals6-3

Jul 6L@ Nationals11-12

Texas Rangers

(48-47)

Jul 11Lvs Astros3-9

Jul 11Wvs Astros7-3

Jul 10Wvs Angels7-6

Jul 9Lvs Angels1-13

Jul 8Wvs Angels8-3

It's the kind of finish that fits both teams' recent stretches — Houston flipping results start to start, Texas finding late-game answers even when the pitching plan wobbles. The Matthews injury and deGrom's scratch are the two things worth tracking going forward: Houston's outfield mix gets thinner, and Texas will need Gore or a next-man-up arm to hold the rotation together if deGrom's absence runs longer than a day-to-day tag.

Houston Astros

(8)

• Day-To-DayBrice Matthews (CF) — The Astros announced that Matthews was removed from Sunday's game against the Rangers after the first inning due to a left knee injury, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.07/12
• 15-Day-ILLance McCullers Jr. (SP) — McCullers (shoulder) will make his next rehab start July 17 with Double-A Corpus Christi, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.07/10
• 15-Day-ILKai-Wei Teng (RP) — The Astros rescinded Teng's option and placed him on the 15-day injured list Wednesday with a right knee sprain, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.07/01
• 60-Day-ILRonel Blanco (SP) — Blanco (elbow) will make another rehab start at Triple-A Sugar Land on Sunday, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.07/11
• 60-Day-ILBennett Sousa (RP) — Sousa (elbow) struck out one over a scoreless inning in a rehab appearance Sunday with Triple-A Sugar Land.07/07
• 60-Day-ILHayden Wesneski (SP) — Wesneski (elbow) struck out three and allowed one earned run on two hits and one walk across four innings Sunday in a rehab start with Double-A Corpus Christi. He also hit a batter and threw two wild pitches.07/07
• 60-Day-ILBrandon Walter (SP) — The Astros announced Friday that Walter (elbow) is in the midst of a throwing progression at the team's complex in West Palm Beach, Fla., Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.06/04
• 60-Day-ILCarlos Correa (SS) — Correa is scheduled to undergo surgery Monday in Houston to repair the tendon in his left ankle, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.06/02

Texas Rangers

(13)

• Day-To-DayJacob deGrom (SP) — DeGrom will not make his scheduled start against the Astros on Sunday due to a mild left glute strain, Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News reports.07/10
• 10-Day-ILDanny Jansen (C) — Jansen (forearm) played catch Wednesday for the first time in two weeks, Jeff Wilson of AllDLLS.com reports.07/08
• 10-Day-ILCorey Seager (SS) — The Rangers placed Seager on the 10-day injured list Wednesday due to lower-back inflammation.07/01
• 10-Day-ILCody Freeman (3B) — The Rangers placed Freeman on the 10-day injured list Thursday due to a herniated disc.06/25
• 15-Day-ILChris Martin (RP) — The Rangers placed Martin on the 15-day injured list Sunday due to a right shoulder impingement.07/12
• 15-Day-ILJakob Junis (RP) — Junis received an injection Saturday for the hip impingement that landed him on the injured list, MLB.com reports.07/05
• 15-Day-ILJalen Beeks (RP) — Beeks (back) will miss the rest of the 2026 season after undergoing arm surgery, Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News reports.07/04
• 15-Day-ILJack Leiter (SP) — Leiter underwent arthroscopic surgery to remove a loose body from his right ankle region Tuesday and should be considered out indefinitely, Kennedi Landry of MLB.com reports.06/23
• 60-Day-ILCody Bradford (SP) — Bradford (elbow) will resume his rehab assignment at Double-A Corpus Christi on Sunday, Jeff Wilson of AllDLLS.com reports.07/09
• 60-Day-ILJordan Montgomery (SP) — Montgomery (elbow) struck out three over two perfect innings in a rehab start Saturday with Double-A Frisco.06/29
• 60-Day-ILMichael Helman (CF) — Texas transferred Helman (hand) to the 60-day injured list Friday.06/19
• 60-Day-ILRobert Garcia (RP) — The Rangers transferred Garcia (shoulder) from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Monday.06/01
• 60-Day-ILCarter Baumler (RP) — Baumler (intercostal) has been shut down from his rehab assignment, MLB.com reports.05/23

Neither team is separating itself in this AL race, and Sunday was a reminder why — both rosters are held together with rehab starts, IL transfers, and in-game injury scares. The Rangers left with the win and the series; the Astros left with more questions about their pitching depth than they had walking in.