Texas Rangers vs Cleveland Guardians Starting Lineup — Wednesday, Jul 1, 2026
Final Lineups
Texas Rangers @ Cleveland Guardians · Wednesday, Jul 1, 2026
Justin Foscue has a .500 average and a 2.667 OPS against Cantillo, going 1-for-2 in 3 plate appearances. Josh Jung boasts a .600 average and a 2.000 OPS in 3-for-5 hitting, while Ezequiel Duran has a .400 average and a 1.000 OPS from going 2-for-5. Jake Burger also has a .400 average and an .800 OPS in 2-for-5 hitting. Kyle Higashioka is hitless in 2 at-bats, going 0-for-2, and Elias Díaz is also hitless in 5 at-bats, going 0-for-5. Cam Cauley, Alejandro Osuna, and Nicky Lopez have no MLB history against Joey Cantillo.
Rhys Hoskins has a .250 average and a .650 OPS against Gore, going 1-for-4 in 5 plate appearances. Austin Hedges is hitless in 1 at-bat, going 0-for-1 in 2 plate appearances, with an OPS of .500 due to a walk. David Fry, Chase DeLauter, Kyle Manzardo, Brayan Rocchio, Gabriel Arias, Kahlil Watson, and Daniel Schneemann have no MLB history against MacKenzie Gore.
Takeaway: The away team has significantly more batters with prior plate appearances and positive hitting history against the opposing starter compared to the home team.
| # | Batter | AVG | OBP | OPS | HR | RBI | vAVG | vOPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Justin Foscue | 0.250 | 0.313 | 0.766 | 7 | 21 | 0.500 | 2.667 |
| 2 | Josh Jung | 0.294 | 0.361 | 0.802 | 9 | 35 | 0.600 | 2.000 |
| 3 | Ezequiel Duran | 0.268 | 0.323 | 0.764 | 13 | 64 | 0.400 | 1.000 |
| 4 | Jake Burger | 0.234 | 0.295 | 0.709 | 20 | 71 | 0.400 | 0.800 |
| 5 | Kyle Higashioka | 0.218 | 0.306 | 0.676 | 7 | 18 | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| 6 | Cam Cauley | 0.207 | 0.281 | 0.626 | 1 | 1 | — | — |
| 7 | Alejandro Osuna | 0.255 | 0.347 | 0.644 | 1 | 24 | — | — |
| 8 | Elias Díaz | 0.232 | 0.255 | 0.646 | 5 | 20 | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| 9 | Nicky Lopez | 0.267 | 0.309 | 0.618 | 1 | 20 | — | — |
| # | Batter | AVG | OBP | OPS | HR | RBI | vAVG | vOPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | David Fry | 0.182 | 0.304 | 0.640 | 6 | 13 | — | — |
| 2 | Chase DeLauter | 0.284 | 0.357 | 0.799 | 13 | 57 | — | — |
| 3 | Rhys Hoskins | 0.179 | 0.306 | 0.687 | 13 | 38 | 0.250 | 0.650 |
| 4 | Kyle Manzardo | 0.215 | 0.306 | 0.684 | 13 | 39 | — | — |
| 5 | Brayan Rocchio | 0.254 | 0.317 | 0.695 | 10 | 51 | — | — |
| 6 | Gabriel Arias | 0.235 | 0.273 | 0.644 | 5 | 11 | — | — |
| 7 | Kahlil Watson | 0.239 | 0.264 | 0.605 | 1 | 11 | — | — |
| 8 | Austin Hedges | 0.269 | 0.343 | 0.731 | 4 | 19 | 0.000 | 0.500 |
| 9 | Daniel Schneemann | 0.206 | 0.275 | 0.596 | 6 | 28 | — | — |
Texas Rangers at Cleveland Guardians (2026-07-01). MacKenzie Gore vs Joey Cantillo at Progressive Field.
MacKenzie Gore, the left-handed starter for the Rangers, enters this contest with a 4.05 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP over 91 innings pitched this season, featuring a solid 9.59 K/9 but a somewhat elevated 3.76 BB/9. His recent starts show an upward trend in ERA, with his last outing yielding 5 earned runs over 5 innings, and his quality start percentage stands at a low 16.7%. Conversely, Guardians' southpaw Joey Cantillo has a season ERA of 3.87 and a WHIP of 1.35 across 86 innings, posting an 8.9 K/9 and a 4.08 BB/9, indicating a slightly higher walk rate than Gore. Cantillo's ERA has also trended upward in recent appearances, and he shares the same 16.7% quality start rate as Gore, suggesting neither pitcher has consistently delivered deep, dominant outings.
Offensively, the Texas Rangers exhibit a slightly more potent lineup with a .711 OPS and 350 runs scored this season, compared to the Cleveland Guardians' .673 OPS and 336 runs. The Rangers also boast a higher batting average at .244 against the Guardians' .228. On the pitching side, the Rangers' staff holds a collective 3.93 ERA and 1.23 WHIP, allowing 102 home runs, while the Guardians' pitching staff has a slightly better 3.77 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP, surrendering 99 home runs. Both teams have demonstrated inconsistent recent form, with the Rangers holding a 5-5 record over their last ten games and the Guardians also at 5-5.
Recent head-to-head matchups from 2025 show a mixed bag, with the Rangers taking four of the last six contests against the Guardians, though the Guardians won the most recent two games in September. The total line for this game is set at 8.0, which aligns with the moderate ERAs of both starting pitchers and the overall offensive capabilities of both teams, suggesting expectations for a game that could lean towards the middle in terms of scoring. The relatively high walk rates for both Gore and Cantillo could contribute to baserunners and scoring opportunities, potentially pushing towards the over.