The Houston Astros take on the Texas Rangers. Check out our MLB odds series for our Astros Rangers prediction and pick.

Framber Valdez goes to the hill for the Astros, while Dane Dunning gets the ball for the Rangers.

Framber Valdez is Mr. Consistency in 2022. He is not the best pitcher in baseball. He isn't even the best pitcher on the Astros. That, of course, is Justin Verlander. However, Framber Valdez can claim something no one else can in this 2022 season: He has pitched 21 straight quality starts. That's 21 straight outings with at least six innings pitched and no more than three earned runs allowed. That's basically four straight months of going to the mound with a starting assignment, pitching deep into a game, and not allowing the opponent to produce a big inning. Not falling off the ledge even once, not ever having an especially bad day, always being able to limit damage and contain the opponent to a reasonable degree, is quite remarkable. Verlander, as a point of comparison (and illustration), has been much more dominant than Valdez over the course of the season, but he ran into a terrible start against the White Sox in mid-June. Those occasional blips happen to all pitchers. Valdez has avoided them for 21 consecutive starting appearances. That's exceptionally consistent.

Dane Dunning has had a season of modest ups and downs. At his best, he is a three-and-a-half-run ERA pitcher. At his worst, he is a five-and-a-half-run ERA pitcher. In April, June, and now August, Dunning has kept his ERA under 3.85 for each of those months. In May and July, his ERA went above 4.75. If he can simply stay at the 3.80 level, that's a solid, decent track record at the back end of the Texas rotation. Going up against Framber Valdez is a real challenge, but Dunning has shown at times in 2022 that his ceiling is not quite as low as some people might assume. There are dozens of starters with worse ERAs and overall pitching profiles.

Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Astros-Rangers MLB odds.

MLB Odds: Astros-Rangers Odds

Houston Astros: -1.5 (+106)

Texas Rangers: +1.5 (-128)

Over: 7.5 (-105)

Under: 7.5 (-115)

Why The Astros Could Cover the Spread

The Astros' bats went silent over the weekend against the Baltimore Orioles. Baltimore pitching handcuffed the Astros in three straight games. Houston managed just four runs in the three-game series. You have to figure that after three really bad games at the plate, plus an off day on Monday to refresh and regroup, the Astros are going to hit the ball well and produce some quality at-bats against Dane Dunning, a decent but hardly overwhelming pitcher. The Astros couldn't solve Oriole pitching. The Rangers do not have the same level of pitching Baltimore does. You should see Houston score at least six runs. With Framber Valdez likely to pitch another quality start, that should be enough.

Why The Rangers Could Cover the Spread

After firing their manager and general manager, the Rangers have played some pretty good baseball. Texas has won seven of its last 10 games and has a real chance to get into single-digit wins under .500. Texas was close to 15 games under .500 not that long ago. Now the Rangers are only 11 under. This team would love to finish the season close to 80 wins. It will take some doing, but the team is headed in the right direction. Dane Dunning is not a great pitcher, but his 3.63 August ERA is his lowest month-specific ERA this year. He is improving, just as the team is. Houston's recent hitting slump also gives Texas a reason to think it can win this game.

Final Astros-Rangers Prediction & Pick

If Framber Valdez pitches normally and the Astros manage to bounce back at the plate after a brutal series against the Orioles, Houston should win comfortably.

Final Astros-Rangers Prediction & Pick: Astros -1.5