Ready for some Astros at Red Sox? The Houston Astros made a tremendous run through the regular season in defense of their 2017 World Series title, rolling to 103 wins a fairly easy American League West title, despite a late run from the Oakland Athletics, who took one of the AL wild cards. They faced Cleveland in the American League Division Series and swept the Tribe easily, beginning with a run of offense against the Indians’ ace, Corey Kluber.
Now Houston heads to Boston to take on the Red Sox, who played “New York, New York” in their locker room after eliminating the Yankees in their ALDS, needing a nailbiter at the end of Game 4 to end the Bronx Bombers’ season. Boston led the majors with 108 wins in the regular season, and now they send their ace, Chris Sale, to the mound to counter Verlander as the ALCS opens. We’ve put together an MLB betting preview for you to peruse as you consider the weekend’s betting.
His last start was not particularly impressive, as he allowed three runs on three hits in 4 ⅔ innings against Baltimore, but by that point, the division race was sewn up, and he looked strong against the Yankees. However, he will need to have better stuff to keep up with Verlander. He does have a 5-2 record with a 1.83 ERA against Houston lifetime, but his postseason ERA is 6.19.
The Boston offense exploded for 20 runs in the last two games of their ALDS, and the pitching staff was good enough against the Yankees, striking out 31 batters and posting a 3.50 ERA over 36 combined innings. Xander Bogaerts has five hits and two RBI, and Andrew Benintendi and J.D. Martinez have combined for nine hits and nine RBI.
Astros at Red Sox ALCS Game 1 Betting Lines & Pick
Mark those calendars, request that time off. We need you loud. #NeverSettle pic.twitter.com/a126dgyzcY
— Houston Astros (@astros) 12 de octubre de 2018
- When: Saturday, October 13, 2018, 8:09 pm ET
- Where: Fenway Park, Boston
- TV: TBS
- Radio: ESPN Radio
- Live Stream: FOX Sports GO
- Astros at Red Sox Game 1 Betting Trends: Houston +114 / Boston -124 / O/U 7
- Projected Pitching Matchup: Justin Verlander (17-9, 2.54 ERA) (HOU) vs Chris Sale (13-4, 2.14 ERA) (BOS)
Why should you bet on the Astros?
Justin Verlander pitched terrific ball down the stretch, posting a 3-0 record with a 1.09 ERA in September. He should have had two more wins, but a pair of six-inning shutout performances against the Angels and the Orioles went for naught as he struck out 21 combined batters but saw the bullpen give up his leads in each occasion. Against Cleveland, he went 5 ⅓ innings in the series opener, permitting two runs on two hits, striking out seven and walking two in 102 pitches, picking up the win. He has the stuff to shut down the Boston offense — if there’s anyone on the Astros’ staff who can do it. In the ALDS, the Houston pitching staff put up a 2.00 ERA with 30 strikeouts over the 27 innings of play. At the same time, the Astros picked up 21 runs, seven runs per game. The Astros can win pitchers’ duels and they can also win barnburners, with the only cold bat in their lineup sitting at shortstop in the hands of Carlos Correa. Marwin Gonzalez had seven hits and five RBI in the division series, and Alex Bregman and George Springer combined for seven RBI and 11 hits. But can they get to Chris Sale?Why should you put your money on the Red Sox?
Chris Sale appeared twice in the ALDS against the Yankees, throwing 5 ⅓ innings of five-hit, two-run ball in the opener, a game the Red Sox would win, 5-4, despite some hiccups from Craig Kimbrel. He also pitched the eighth inning in a setup role in Game 4, throwing a scoreless inning on 13 pitches. He pitched September on his way back from a stint on the disabled list, with his pitch count limits rising with each outing.
His last start was not particularly impressive, as he allowed three runs on three hits in 4 ⅔ innings against Baltimore, but by that point, the division race was sewn up, and he looked strong against the Yankees. However, he will need to have better stuff to keep up with Verlander. He does have a 5-2 record with a 1.83 ERA against Houston lifetime, but his postseason ERA is 6.19.
The Boston offense exploded for 20 runs in the last two games of their ALDS, and the pitching staff was good enough against the Yankees, striking out 31 batters and posting a 3.50 ERA over 36 combined innings. Xander Bogaerts has five hits and two RBI, and Andrew Benintendi and J.D. Martinez have combined for nine hits and nine RBI.
