If the AL West race is going to tighten up, the time is now, as the Houston Astros and Seattle Mariners begin a four-game series against one another on Thursday night. At home, the Astros are favored in Thursday’s series opener with a moneyline of -140 compared to Seattle’s moneyline of +120. The game also has an over/under of eight runs.
The Mariners head into this series with the momentum of a three-game winning streak after sweeping the Rangers this week. Of course, Seattle also got swept at home in a three-game series by the Astros last weekend.
Yet, they are 17-4 in July, bringing them within ten games of Houston atop the AL West and into one of the Wild Card spots in the American League.
Meanwhile, the Astros suffered a major embarrassment this week by getting swept in a three-game series by the A’s. It was a shocking turn of events after the Astros won five in a row coming out of the all-star break.
Nevertheless, the Astros still have a 10-game lead atop the AL West and have the third-most wins in the majors.
Turn It Around
The Astros will send Jose Urquidy to the mound on Thursday in hopes of stopping their losing streak. Urquidy will be hoping to earn his 10th win of the season, going 9-4 with a 3.93 ERA over his first 18 starts of 2022.
He’s cranked things up a notch lately, pitching at least six innings while allowing three runs or less in his last seven starts, helping Houston go 5-2 in those games.
However, Houston’s lineup has cooled in recent days, scoring just ten runs during their three games in Oakland. In their last 13 games, the Astros have three runs or less in eight times.
Yordan Alvarez has three homers and two doubles while batting .353 in his last seven games, but the likes of Kyle Tucker, Yuli Gurriel, and others have struggled coming out of the break.
Already There
Logan Gilbert will start for the Mariners on Thursday, having already won 10 games this season. In his 20 starts in 2022, the righty is 10-4 with a 2.77 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP.
Gilbert has been a huge part of Seattle’s hot streak in July, with the Mariners going 9-2 in his last 11 starts, including two wins over the Astros.
Of course, the Mariners still haven’t hit their stride offensively since the break. While they’ve scored at least four runs in four straight games, they’ve averaged just 3.5 runs per game since the all-star break.
Julio Rodriguez and Ty France have both homered twice since the break, although several members of Seattle’s supporting cast like Jesse Winker, Eugenio Suarez, and Carlos Santana have all hit a slump.
Play It Safe
While momentum is on Seattle’s side heading into this series, the Astros are still the better time, especially after sweeping the Mariners last weekend.
But Urquidy will make sure that the Astros have a fighting chance in this game while Houston’s lineup is more powerful and potent. With the odds tight, bet on the Astros to win Thursday’s series opener.
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