Houston Astros (36-40) vs Baltimore Orioles (49-26)
Game Info: Sunday, June 23, 2024 at 2:10 pm (Minute Maid Park)
The Line: Betting Odds: Houston Astros -112 / Baltimore Orioles -105 — Over/Under: 8
The Baltimore Orioles and the Houston Astros meet Sunday in MLB action from Minute Maid Park. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Baltimore Orioles vs Houston Astros Prediction.
Starting Pitching Matchup
The Baltimore Orioles will send out Albert Suarez here and Suarez is 3-1 with a 2.05 ERA and 40 strikeouts this season. This will be Suarez’s first career start against the Astros. The Houston Astros will send out Framber Valdez here and Valdez is 5-5 with a 3.91 ERA and 56 strikeouts this season. In his career, Valdez is 0-0 with a 5.12 ERA and 16 strikeouts against Baltimore.
Baltimore Orioles Recap
The Baltimore Orioles come into this one looking to bounce back from a 5-1 loss on Saturday at the hands of the Astros to try to avoid the sweep. The series loss for the O’s snapped their series win streak which included wins over the Yankees and Phillies over the last week.
Orioles Still Clicking Offensively Despite Loss
Gunnar Henderson leads the Orioles with 24 home runs, along with 53 RBIs and 4 triples but also has a team-high 80 strikeouts in addition to 13 stolen bases. Adley Rutschman has a team-high 90 hits with 14 home runs and 53 RBIs in addition to 11 doubles while Anthony Santander has 13 doubles with 20 home runs and 51 RBIs and Colton Cowser has 12 doubles and Ryan Mountcastle has a team-high 20 doubles. Cedric Mullins has also contributed a team-high 16 stolen bases as well this season.
Why the Baltimore Orioles will win
- The Orioles have won each of their last 10 Sunday games as underdogs.
- The Astros have lost seven of their last eight games as home favorites following a win.
- The Orioles have covered the run line in each of their last nine games as underdogs against American League opponents following a road loss.
- The Astros have failed to cover the run line in seven of their last eight games as favorites following a home win.
Houston Astros Recap
The Houston Astros come into this game looking to complete the sweep of the Orioles after their victory on Saturday. The series win for the Astros kept the series win streak alive for Houston after picking up series wins over the White Sox and Tigers over the last week.
Astros Starting To Put The Pieces Together To Get Back To .500
Jose Altuve has 93 hits and a .297 batting average with 11 home runs, 32 RBIs and 16 doubles while Kyle Tucker has a team-high 19 homers with 11 doubles and 40 RBIs. Yordan Alvarez also has 16 homers with 41 RBIs and 16 doubles while Tucker has the Astros’ team lead with 10 stolen bases so far this season. Jeremy Pena also has 79 hits and a .274 batting average as well as 10 stolen bases of his own this season.
Why the Houston Astros will win
- The Astros have won each of their last five games after playing the previous day.
- The Orioles have lost each of their last five games at Minute Maid Park against AL West opponents that held a losing record.
- The Astros have covered the run line in each of their last five games after playing the previous day.
- The Orioles have failed to cover the run line each of their last four road games against AL West opponents that held a losing record.
Baltimore Orioles vs Houston Astros Prediction
I’m on the Orioles here. There’s a reason that the Orioles have rarely been swept over the last couple of seasons, and that’s because this is a talented lineup that battles every time they take the field and this is still one of the best lineups in baseball. The O’s haven’t had the best luck against lefties in recent weeks, but Valdez has been inconsistent, a lot more inconsistent than we’re used to from Houston’s ace. The Astros have looked solid in this series, but I think the O’s bounce back and avoid the sweep. Give me Baltimore.