Saturday’s MLB slate is a loaded one, especially in the 7 p.m. EST window. Out at Camden Yards, the Houston Astros (71-58) and Baltimore Orioles (59-69) duel for the second time in as many days. The ‘Stros took the first two games of this series, but can they keep stringing some wins together to shake off a cold stretch?
Here’s an Orioles vs. Astros prediction and pick on DraftKings Sportsbook as the series continues on Saturday.
Orioles vs. Astros prediction, preview
The Astros recently went 31 straight innings without scoring a single run as they dropped four games in a row, but Houston finally seems to have bounced back over the last couple of nights. They beat the Orioles 7-2 on Thursday, then came out with a 10-7 win last night as the offense started showing signs of life once more. Somehow, the Astros still hold a two-game lead in the AL West and now wait for superstar slugger Yordan Alvarez to make his return as he makes rehab starts in Double-A.
Over the last 15 days, Houston ranks 25th in scoring with just 47 runs. They’re 26th in batting average (.211) as well as 26th in OPS (.623), so it makes sense that the runs weren’t exactly pouring in over recent weeks. However, we’ve seen what this team can do when the bats are clicking since they still rank fifth in average this season, and the pitching staff can often make up for a lack of run support. The loss of closer Josh Hader does hurt for sure, but the Astros are starting to round back into form when it matters. If the pitching lab can revive the corpse of Craig Kimbrel, who recently signed with the team, Houston can hang in there as the race for the postseason continues.
The Orioles don’t find themselves in the same position though, especially after they started the season in very poor form and essentially dug a hole they cannot escape from. However, the O’s have their fair share of big nights at the plate and are 6-4 across their last 10 games as well, even despite selling off key pieces at the Trade Deadline.
Over the last two weeks, Baltimore falls 20th in batting average (.238), 22nd in OPS (.701) and 18th in runs scored (56). It’s worth noting that rookie catcher Samuel Basallo just signed an eight-year contract extension worth $67 million just a few days after making his big-league debut, so the front office must really like what they’ve seen from the 21-year-old through his minor-league career. Over that two week span though, the Orioles actually rank fifth in ERA (3.28) and sixth in WHIP (1.15) as the arms are in the midst of a hot streak — albeit one that’s tough to trust given the full season’s sample.
Orioles vs. Astros pick, best bet
As things currently stand, the Orioles are -120 Moneyline favorites while the Astros come in at -101 to win outright. The run total on DraftKings Sportsbook sits at nine combined runs.
Two right-handers go toe-to-toe on the mound this evening. For Baltimore, Dean Kremer (3.97 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 123 SO) makes his 26th appearance of the year. Houston deploys Cristian Javier (3.38 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, seven SO) who’s thrown just eight innings across two starts since returning from Tommy John surgery.
Despite the fact that he hasn’t seen much action this season, Cristian Javier’s pitcher props are intriguing this evening. He’s posted an elite 34.9% chase rate thus far and allowed just three hits in each of his two starts, with one earned run allowed in one and two in the other. The Baltimore lineup doesn’t exactly strike fear into opposing pitchers, and Javier certainly won’t pitch more than four or five innings tonight as he continues to work his way back to speed. With that said, under 2.5 earned runs makes a lot of sense for the veteran.
Best bet: Cristian Javier under 2.5 earned runs allowed (-135)
Click the odds on this bet to tail!
