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Now that Monday is finally over, who's ready for some prime-time Tuesday night MLB action? In this edition, the Boston Red Sox will look to keep their playoff hopes alive when they head to Houston to take on the Astros. Join us for our MLB odds series where our Red Sox-Astros prediction and pick will be revealed.
Entering play with a 66-59 record and in prime position to make a move into the playoff field, the Red Sox have won five out of their last eight games and are only four games back of the final Wild Card slot. Having missed out on the postseason fun a year ago, is this the fateful season where Boston is one of the final twelve teams competing for a championship? In line for the start in this one will be righty Tanner Houck who is 3-6 with a 5.05 ERA in his first appearance since sustaining a facial fracture due to a come-backer.
On the other side of things, the Houston Astros find themselves knocking on the door of the AL West division. As it stands Houston sits only 1.5 games behind the Texas Rangers for first place and were also able to snap a three-game losing streak by defeating Boston in game one of this series on Monday by a score of 9-4. Getting the projected start in this one will end up being the 40-year-old Justin Verlander who is 8-6 with a 3.36 ERA and will be making his fourth appearance since rejoining the ‘Stros starting staff.
Here are the Red Sox-Astros MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Red Sox-Astros Odds
Boston Red Sox: +1.5 (-172)
Houston Astros: (+142)
Over: 8.5 (-122)
Under: 8.5 (+100)
How To Watch Red Sox vs. Astros
TV: AT&T SportsNet Southwest
Stream: MLB.TV
Time: 8:10 ET/5:10 PT
*Watch MLB games LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Red Sox Could Cover The Spread
On Monday, the Red Sox played a game that they would like to forget as they were pounded for nine runs on a whopping 16 hits and could not cool off an Astros offense that seemingly was firing at all cylinders. In order for Boston to improve their record ATS which stands at 64-60 overall and cover, they will be in desperate need of a much better outing from Houck and the bullpen arms.
Before Houck landed on the IL with a terrifying liner that struck him just under his right eye, it is easy to forget that the brief stint on the injured list might've been a blessing in disguise given the fact that he was in the midst of a nine-start winless streak that saw him go 0-6 with a 5.40 ERA over that span. Clearly, the Red Sox are hopeful and keeping their fingers crossed that the short time off for Houck was just the mental reset that the 27-year-old hurler needed ahead of this evening's start.
In addition to Houck needing to be on his A game for this one, be on the lookout for Boston to be more productive with runners in scoring position. On Monday, Boston went an underwhelming 3-18 in this area which ultimately was nowhere close to being good enough to overcome the defending champs on the road.
Why The Astros Could Cover The Spread
After getting swept by the red-hot AL West counterpart Seattle Mariners, the Astros showcased their championship grit en route to setting the tone against Boston a night ago. Facing a 3-0 deficit in Monday's bout with Boston, the Astros responded like a team coming off of a World Series title by unleashing a hefty dosage of offense and leaving no uncertainty of losing in their wake.
At first glance, this collective squad has posted a dead-even 63-63 record against the spread in 2023, and if the Astros are going to reward their bettors' faith in choosing them to cover in back-to-back nights, they will need to once again receive a team-effort from the plate. As it stood, Houston saw all nine of their bats in the starting lineup record a hit including six names finding their way to put together at least two hits on the night. Whether it was putting themselves in favorable counts or waiting for the perfect pitch to hit, this isn't a lineup that is going to be lured into chasing balls out of the zone.
In fact, this is a borderline top-five offense in the league as they have scored the sixth-most runs with 617 in all of baseball. Trust me, the last thing that Boston wants to happen in this one is to get in an offensive shootout with the high-powered bats of Houston.
Above all else, the ‘Stros will be feeling pretty good about things with Verlander on the bump. While his career statistics versus Boston don't necessarily jump out at you, fear not. Verlander has at least pitched five innings in each outing since coming back home to Houston and will likely be an even tougher matchup than what Cristian Javier was on Monday.
Final Red Sox-Astros Prediction & Pick
Fans of baseball should be stoked about this matchup! With both sides playing fairly well of late, could this be a future postseason duel come October? Regardless, take the Red Sox in this one to bounce back in what should be a nail-biter.
Final Red Sox-Astros Prediction & Pick: Red Sox +1.5 (-172)
