The Los Angeles Angels came into this series with the Astros in Houston in the mix in the AL West and three games over .500. Now, after two straight losses, the Angels are 30-29, 7.5 games back of the Rangers and in danger of falling back to .500, or even under .500 if they get swept. Last night, the Angels fell 6-2 after a 5-2 loss on Thursday and now Houston is 34-23.
For Game 3 of this four-game series the Angels will send Patrick Sandoval to the mound against 6-1 Cristian Javier with his 2.97 ERA. Sandoval is 3-4 with a 3.42 ERA.
The Astros are home favorites in this one against a Houston team that has found its groove offensively.
Angels vs. Astros odds, run line and total
Angels vs. Astros prediction and pick
Over the last seven days, only the Dodgers are better offensively than the Astros. Yordan Alvarez continues to excel at the heart of their order and he reached the 50 RBI mark yesterday, the first in the MLB to do so this season. However, their recent success isn't about Alvarez, it's all about how Jose Altuve has made their lineup make sense and has unlocked Alex Bregman and Jeremy Pena.
Hopefully he can help the Astros find more success against lefties now too. The Astros are 17th in OPS against left-handed pitchers like Sandoval. Altuve has an OPS nearly 100 points higher against lefties for his career compared to against right-handers. He will give them a boost.
Both offenses might have some success in this one because while Sandoval has an ERA of 3.42, his FIP is 4.22 and he has 36 strikeouts to 22 walks. He seems due for a rough outing and he had a few shaky ones last month. Javier is in a similar situation. Though Houston has won the game in nine of his 11 starts, Javier's FIP is at 3.81, nearly a run higher than his ERA. He has allowed nine home runs and one in each of his last four starts.
In this spot, I'm going to back Houston's offense and actually fade both of these starting pitchers by taking the over.
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