The Houston Astros will play the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. ATTSN Southwest will be airing this AL matchup and the action gets underway at 1:10 p.m. ET.
Houston Astros at Tampa Bay Rays Odds
Houston (-155) is entering this game as the favorite against Tampa Bay (+145) and Vegas has the Over/Under for this afternoon’s game at 7 runs. Odds for betting on the games total sit at +100 for the over and -120 for the under. Runline odds stand at -110 for picking the Astros -1.5 runs and -110 for the Rays +1.5.
The Rays are 41-41 straight up (SU) and 47-34 against the spread (ATS). They’ve gained 5.2 units for bettors taking the moneyline and 12.8 units (ATS). The Astros are 55-30 SU and have gone 45-39 ATS. In total, the teams gained 4.6 units for moneyline bettors and 2.7 units ATS.
Tampa Bay games have a 34-45-2 over/under record so far in 2018. Houston has an over/under record of 38-42-4.
Charlie Morton is getting the nod for Houston. The right-handed Morton is 10-1 with a 2.54 ERA and 122 strikeouts. He’s 1-0 with four strikeouts and a 0.00 ERA against Tampa Bay this year.
The Rays will send lefty Blake Snell (10-4, 2.31 ERA) to the mound. Snell has 113 strikeouts and 40 walks to his credit, as well as a 1.04 WHIP. Snell is 1-0 with six strikeouts and a 1.29 ERA in one start against Houston this year.
Tampa Bay’s pitchers have allowed 3.9 runs per game overall this season as a unit. The teams starters have an ERA of 3.83, a WHIP of 1.17 and a strikeouts-per-nine of 8.5. The bullpen has a 3.45 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 8.2 K/9.
Tampa Bay’s offense is putting up 3.9 runs per contest, including 3.6 per game over its last 10 games and 4.0 per game over its last five. The team has a slash-line of .244/.333/.321 over its last five contests and is 4-1 SU during that stretch.
Third baseman Matt Duffy and catcher Wilson Ramos have led the Rays offense this year. Duffy is hitting .322/.367/.433 with four home runs, 23 RBIs and 24 runs scored, and the line for Ramos stands at .291/.338/.461 with 11 homers, 43 RBIs and 24 runs.
For the visiting squad, Houston’s pitching staff allowed 3.1 runs per game and its starters own a 2.96 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 10.25 K/9. The bullpen has an excellent ERA of just 2.55, along with a WHIP of 1.07 and a K-per-9 of 10.85.
The Astros offense has slashed .263/.337/.435 on its way to 5.1 runs scored per game this season, including 4.2 runs per game over the teams last 10 games and 3.8 per game over the teams last five outings (3-2 SU).
Second baseman Jose Altuve and third baseman Alex Bregman continue to lead Houston’s hitters. Altuve is slashing .342/.407/.483 with seven home runs, 41 RBIs, 55 runs and 12 stolen bases. Bregman is hitting .277/.377/.519 with 16 homers, 53 RBIs and 52 runs scored.
The Astros have lost 7.0 units and are 15-16 ATS when facing a lefty starter this season. The over has hit in 14 of those games, compared to 16 that’ve gone under in such games. On the other hand, the Rays have lost 1.9 units and are 29-25 ATS when facing a right-handed starting pitcher. The over has hit in 25 of those games, compared to 28 which went under the total.
Houston Astros vs. Tampa Bay Rays MLB Tip
Predictions: SU Winner – Astros, ATS Winner – Astros, O/U – UNDER
Betting Notes
- The over has cashed in just two of Tampa Bay’s last seven games.
- The Rays have won seven of their last eight games SU.
- Tampa Bay has posted 19.4 Runs + Hits + Errors per game over its last 10 contests and 19.2 over its last five.
- The Astros have hit 15 home runs in their last 10 games. The Rays have hit seven over their last 10.
