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The Houston Astros and Minnesota Twins square off on Wednesday with first pitch set for 7:40 p.m. EST. The game takes place at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota and will only be available on local TV or through an MLB.tv subscription. The Twins will have Chris Archer on the hill while the ‘Stros will send out Jose Urquidy.
The Twins are on a bit of a roll, winning seven of their last 10 games and sit in first place in the AL Central. They did fall 5-0 in the opening game of the series between these two teams last night, though. Archer has been decent this season, though he hasn’t pitched a ton. He’s tossed just 19.1 innings but has only allowed seven earned runs in that span. He’s faced some pretty good lineups too, like the LA Dodgers and Tampa Bay Rays. He hasn’t gone more than 4.1 innings in any of his appearances this season though. The team is averaging just over three runs per game offensively, though so Archer will need to toss well because it’s doubtful any major run support will be there. Carlos Correa won’t face his former team after landing on the injured list on Tuesday.
The Astros are on even more of a tear than the Twins, having won eight straight games and are sitting just one game back in the AL West. Offensively they haven't been all that impressive so far this season, scoring under four runs per contest on average. They’re on that same pace during this streak too, scoring no more than five runs in any one game. Their pitching has been incredible though, having only allowed eight total runs over the last eight games, which includes four shutouts. Urquidy has allowed just six earned runs in his last 16.1 innings pitched while sitting down 12 hitters in that span.
Astros vs. Twins
Pitchers: Jose Urquidy vs. Chris Archer
First pitch: 7:40 p.m. EST
Astros local broadcast: AT&T SportsNet Southwest
Twins local broadcast: Bally Sports North
Live stream: MLB.tv (subscription)
Moneyline odds: Astros -125, Twins +105
Picks & predictions
Moneyline pick: Astros -125
Both teams come into this one in good form recently, but it’s tough to argue against a team looking for nine straight wins. Especially considering they just shut out the Twins last night and have given up just eight runs in a little bit over a week.
Player prop pick: Alex Bregman over 0.5 home runs (+350)
Both teams have offensive flaws here, with season-long run totals in the bottom half of the league. But the Twins and Astros both hit the long ball at a solid clip. Minnesota is averaging one bomb per game while the ‘Stros have hit 36 home runs in just 30 games. Bregman already has a home run against Archer in his career and has already hit five in 2022, which ranks third on the team. He hit one two days ago too, so he’s seeing the ball well at the moment too.
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