Tampa Bay Rays (58-58) vs Houston Astros (61-55)
Game Info: Monday, August 12, 2024 at 6:50 pm (Tropicana Field)
The Line: Betting Odds: Tampa Bay Rays +111 / Houston Astros -132 — Over/Under: 7
The Houston Astros and the Tampa Bay Rays meet Monday in MLB action from Tropicana Field. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Houston Astros vs Tampa Bay Rays Prediction.
Starting Pitching Matchup
The Houston Astros will send out Framber Valdez for the start here and Valdez is 11-5 with a 3.46 ERA and 113 strikeouts this season. This will be Valdez’s second career start against the Rays. The Tampa Bay Rays will start Taj Bradley here and Bradley is 6-6 with a 3.07 ERA and 106 strikeouts this season. In his career, Bradley is 1-1 with an 8.64 ERA and 10 strikeouts against the Astros.
Houston Astros Recap
The Houston Astros will try to keep their momentum going after sweeping the Red Sox over the weekend thanks to a 10-2 win over Boston in Sunday’s series finale. The win gave the Astros back-to-back series wins after knocking off the rival Texas Rangers this time last week.
Astros Trying To Pull Away In AL West
Jose Altuve has 142 hits and a .303 batting average with 15 home runs, 50 RBIs and 21 doubles while Yordan Alvarez also has 25 homers with 63 RBIs and 27 doubles. Altuve has the Astros’ team lead with 15 stolen bases so far this season. Jeremy Pena also has 121 hits and a .273 batting average as well as 13 stolen bases of his own this season. Alex Bregman’s added 17 homers and 57 RBIs also.
Why the Houston Astros will win
- The Rays have lost seven of their last eight night games against the Astros following a win.
- The road team has won seven of the Astros’ last eight games.
- The road team has covered the run line in each of the Astros’ last 14 games.
- The Rays have failed to cover the run line in 10 of their last 11 home games against AL West opponents.
Tampa Bay Rays Recap
The Tampa Bay Rays come into this one looking to build some steam after salvaging a 2-1 win in Sunday’s series finale against the Baltimore Orioles. The win wasn’t enough to avoid a second straight series loss though, as the Rays fell short against the Cardinals this time last week.
Rays Trying To Stay Afloat In Wild Card Hunt
Yandy Diaz has 118 hits with 23 doubles while Jose Caballero has a team-high 32 stolen bases. Richie Palacios also has 19 stolen bases while Jose Siri has 14 home runs, 38 RBIs and a team-high 128 strikeouts. Brandon Lowe also has chipped in 14 home runs, 43 RBIs and a pair of triples as well this season.
Why the Tampa Bay Rays will win
- The Astros have lost seven of their last eight Monday night games as road favorites against American League opponents.
- The Rays have won five of their last six games as home underdogs against the Astros following a home win.
- The underdogs have covered the run line in seven of the last eight games between the Astros and Rays.
- The Astros have failed to cover the run line in six of their last seven night games against teams that held a winning record.
Houston Astros vs Tampa Bay Rays Prediction
I’m on the Astros here. I get the allure of backing the Rays at home and I’m a Taj Bradley fan, but the thing here is that Bradley has started to get hit in some of his recent outings, and this has historically been the time of year when the Astros turn up the heat and get into playoff form. This Astros team looks like a team on a mission and they certainly showed it in that weekend series against Boston. I just think the Rays are overmatched here and in the end, I think that Houston gets it done to draw first blood. Give me Houston here.