Boston Red Sox vs Texas Rangers Prediction & Match Preview - May 14th

The Boston Red Sox will face off against the Texas Rangers for the second game of their three-game series at Globe Life Field in Arlington.

Both teams have floundered so far this season. The Red Sox are 11-20 and are in last place in the American League East. The Rangers, on the other hand, hold a 12-17 record and are in fourth in the American League West standings.

While both teams are average at best when it comes to pitching, they have been straight up unimpressive when it comes to batting. Boston and Texas rank 26th and 27th respectively in terms of OPS.

Match Details

Fixture: Boston Red Sox vs Texas Rangers.

Date & Time: Saturday, May 14, 7:05 p.m. EDT.

Venue: Globe Life Field, Arlington, Texas.

Boston Red Sox Preview

The Boston Red Sox are dead last in the American League East. Outside of a few good pitching outings, the team is lacking and it often seems like they have nothing to offer. Their batting has been underwhelming with an OPS of just .630 and a measly 18 homers and 107 runs scored.

If there's any silver lining to this roadtrip, it's that the Rangers are atrocious on their home field. Texas is 5-10 at home while maintaining a respectable 7-7 record away from it. If the Red Sox can string up a few runs somehow, they might just grab a win over the Rangers.

Key Player - Xander Bogaerts

It seems like Xander Bogaerts is all alone in the Boston Red Sox batting lineup. Outside of Rafael Devers and J.D. Martinez, Bogaerts has been the only consistent bat in the lineup for the Red Sox.

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"'If the Red Sox make (Xander) Bogaerts available, it's hard to find a better fit right now in the Major Leagues than the St. Louis Cardinals.' - @jonmorosi #MLBCentral"

The middle infielder boasts an American League second-best .345 batting average with eight doubles on 40 base hits. He's also currently in contract talks with the Red Sox as his current deal will expire by the end of the season.

In turn, he has been embroiled in trade talks since 2021, and if the Red Sox don't pursue him, it's academic that many teams will look to bring in the Boston stalwart.

Boston Red Sox Projected Lineup

Starting Pitcher: Rich Hill.

Enrique Hernandez, CF
Rafael Devers, 3B
J.D. Martinez, DH
Xander Bogaerts, SS
Alex Verdugo, LF
Trevor Story, 2B
Bobby Dalbec, 1B
Christian Vazquez, C
Jackie Bradley Jr., RF

Texas Rangers Preview

The Texas Rangers are in rebuilding mode this season. The offseason acquisition of Corey Seager from the Los Angeles Dodgers is a foundation piece that should pay off a few years from now. They are in slightly better shape than the Red Sox, having won six of their last ten games.

While their batting order leaves little to nothing to be desired, their pitching crew are faring a bit better. It would be a test for the pitching staff to prove that they can handle an anemic Red Sox offense in this one. Though the Rangers have been worse at home, Boston hasn't been faring too well on the road either.

Key Player - Corey Seager

Corey Seager was one of the most underrated players during his time with the Los Angeles Dodgers. This is mainly due to the star-studded lineup and the failure of the fans to realize the consistency that he has delivered throughout his tenure.

He's been consistent with his new team so far, batting .243 with seven homers and 15 RBIs on 27 base hits.

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"SEAGER X 2 Make that TWO homers for Corey Seager on the night!!!! @Rangers | #StraightUpTX" - @ Bally Sports Southwest

Seager hit two homers in the previous game and will be raring to punish a measly Boston Red Sox rotation.

Texas Rangers Projected Lineup

Starting Pitcher: Glenn Otto.

Marcus Semien, 2B
Andy Ibañez, DH
Corey Seager, SS
Adolis Garcia, RF
Nick Solak, LF
Nathaniel Lowe, 1B
Eli White, CF
Sam Huff, C
Charlie Culberson, 3B

Boston Red Sox vs Texas Rangers Prediction

This should be anyone's ball game as both teams sport similar win-loss records. However, we'll give the Texas Rangers a slight edge as they have been in better form than the Boston Red Sox as of late. Texas to win 2-1.

Where to follow Red Sox vs Rangers?

Watch: NESN (Red Sox), Bally Sports Southwest (Rangers).

Listen: WEEI 93.7, WCCM 1490 AM/103.7 FM (Red Sox), 105.3 The Fan, KRLD 1080, KFLC 1270 (Rangers).

About the author

Daniel Santiago is a journalist who has been reporting on baseball at Sportskeeda since 2022. He was drawn towards the sport after the underlying statistics and the analysis surrounding it grabbed his attention.

Daniel particularly enjoys furnishing reports about historic events in baseball and analyzing the game through a statistic-based outlook, based on Fangraphs and Baseball-Reference. This is in line with how he enjoyed watching baseball as a pastime. As a writer, he is very particular about cross-checking from reputable sources and doing his due diligence.

He became a lifelong Hideki Matsui fan after his exploits in the 2009 World Series for the New York Yankees. Among the current generation, Daniel's favorites include Shohei Ohtani and Jung Hoo Lee. Daniel is a huge follower of Asian baseball and both Ohtani and Lee have been in the top echelon of their respective leagues during their time with the NPB and KBO.

His favorite moment as a baseball fan was the final at-bat of the 2023 World Baseball Classic between Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout. He believes there aren't many words to fittingly describe the intensity of the moment.

As an avid sports fan, Daniel watches other sports and Esports when not writing about baseball.

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Edited by Anantaajith Raghuraman

Boston Red Sox vs Texas Rangers Prediction & Match Preview - May 14th | MLB Season 2022