The Astros are cruising toward the playoffs while the Orioles are trying to stay close in the wild-card race, heading into the opener of a three-game series in Houston Friday night. Lance McCullers will make his third start of this season for the Astros here against rookie Kyle Bradish for Baltimore.
Which way are we going with our free baseball betting pick?
MLB Betting Odds
Friday’s baseball betting lines opened Houston at around -210 over Baltimore, with an over/under of 8.5un -113 runs. Both figures were holding steady in the early betting action.
Orioles-Astros MLB Betting Preview
Baltimore just took two of three games at home from the White Sox, rallying very late to win Thursday’s series rubber match 4-3 in 11 innings. Just before that, the Orioles took two of three from Boston, and just before that, they took two of three from Toronto. So Baltimore is 3-0 over its last three series and 6-4 over its last ten games.
At 65-59 overall, the Orioles probably won’t catch the Yankees in the AL East race, but they also trail Seattle by only 2.5 games in the battle for the No. 3 spot in the AL wild-card standings.
Meanwhile, Houston swept three games from Minnesota by scores of 4-2, 5-3, and Thursday 6-3. Just before that, the Astros lost two of three at Atlanta, and just before that, they split four games at the White Sox. So Houston is 1-1-1 over its last three series and 6-4 over its last ten games.
At 81-45 overall, the Astros lead the AL West by 12.5 games over the second-place Mariners, and they’re 3.5 games up on the Yankees in the battle for the best record in the American League.
This series is the first meeting between these teams this season. Last year these teams split six meetings.
Friday’s Pitching Match-Up
McCullers is 1/2 on quality starts this season, which for him began a couple of weeks ago due to injury. Last Friday, he gave up three runs and seven hits through five innings of a 6-2 Houston loss to the Braves. Six days before that, in his season debut, he tossed six innings of two-hit, shutout ball in an 8-0 Astros win over Oakland.
So Houston is 1-1 with McCullers this season.
This will be McCullers’ first start against Baltimore since 2017, and that’s a long time ago.
Bradish is 2/15 on quality starts this year, pitching on a short leash. Last Saturday, he gave up three runs and nine hits through 5 2/3 innings of a 4-3 Orioles loss to Boston. And over his last three starts, he’s allowed nine runs and 20 hits through 15 2/3 innings.
Baltimore is 9-6 with Bradish this season, although that’s probably two or three games better than they should be, based on his performances.
This will be Bradish’s first career action against Houston.
Splits With the Sticks
Baltimore is batting .240 against right-handed pitching this season, with a .305 team OBP and a .396 team slugging percentage.
Houston is slashing .247/.321/.421 against right-handed pitching.
The Bullpens
The Astros bullpen owns an ML-best 3.01 ERA this season and a 1.19 WHIP.
The Orioles pen owns a 3.19 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP.
- Get more details: Baltimore at Houston 8/26/22 Betting Stats
MLB Betting Trends
The Orioles are 28-35 on the road this season and 40-42 against right-handed starters.
The Astros are 42-18 at home and 52-34 against right-handed starters.
Totals Report
- The Under is 62-56 in Orioles games this season.
- The Under is 72-49 in Astros games.
- The Under is 32-25 at Minute Maid Park this season.
