The Astros and White Sox wrap up their series in Houston on Thursday night.
Framber Valdez is scheduled to pitch for Houston, while Davis Martin will take the mound for Chicago.
Astros vs. White Sox prediction, preview
Valdez has been one of the most consistent pitchers in baseball over the past few years and is turning in another good one in 2025. Valdez has a 3.07 ERA and is striking out 8.9 batters per nine innings. He always turns out a long outing for Houston as well, giving the bullpen a break on nights that he is on the mound. Valdez is the only pitcher in baseball with two complete games already this season. He has heated up even more recently. In his last six starts, he has a 5-0 record, a 1.84 ERA and 47 strikeouts. Against a White Sox offense that ranks 26th in runs scored this season, he should put forward another great start.
Once the bullpens get involved, that is also good news for Houston. The Astros’ bullpen has a 3.28 ERA this season, the fifth-best mark in baseball.
Martin is on the bump for the White Sox on Thursday night in Houston. The young pitcher has already started more games this season than he has in any other season of his career. He is establishing himself as a permanent fixture in this rotation, with a 3.62 ERA on the season. Martin has done a great job of limiting runs for the most part, but his strikeout numbers are very low. He is striking out just 5.8 batters per nine innings this season. This Astros lineup also does not strike out, ranking 27th in baseball in total strikeouts this season. Martin will need to try to get some length out of this start because the White Sox’s bullpen is struggling. They have a bullpen ERA of 4.41, a bottom-10 number in MLB.
Astros vs. White Sox pick, best bet
This is the rubber match between Houston and Chicago, with the two teams splitting the first two games of this series. The Astros have a lot of advantages in this game. Houston leads the AL West, while the White Sox have the worst record in the American League. While Martin has been solid this season, Valdez is undoubtedly the better pitcher, especially in his current form. The Astros also have the superior bullpen, the better lineup and home-field advantage. The White Sox’s lineup has just been horrific this season, ranking last in MLB in team OPS. Valdez should be able to shut them down, picking up a lot of strikeouts and going deep into the game. The Astros’ offense should be able to get a couple of runs up on Martin as well. That is why my favorite play for this matchup is a same-game parlay with the Astros’ first five innings ML and Valdez 7+ strikeouts. They should control the game early, winning the first five innings, while Valdez racks up strikeouts against this poor Chicago lineup.
