Twins vs. Astros Pick
Will the Minnesota Twins earn another upset win on the road against the Houston Astros when the two meet again today at 2:10PM ET?
According to oddsmakers at BetDSI, the Astros are the favorite today, as they are getting odds of -190 to win, while the Twins are getting a money line of +170 to prevail. The over/under total for the game has been listed at 9.5 runs.
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The pitching matchup this afternoon has Kyle Gibson (5-7, 6.31 ERA) on the mound for the Twins to face Mike Fiers (5-4, 3.84) of the Astros. Gibson has struggled in plenty of starts this year. His last start before the break saw him give up seven runs in just four innings to the Orioles. He has 51 strikeouts with 38 walks this season and a 1.77 WHIP. Fiers has been pretty good this season. He has allowed just 40 earned runs in 93.2 innings of work. Fiers also has 87 strikeouts with 37 walks and a 1.32 WHIP.
These two have split the first two games of the series, as the Astros picked up a 10-5 win on Friday and the Twins has a 4-2 win on Saturday night. Houston is now 61-30 overall and 28-19 at home while Minnesota is 46-44 overall and 26-16 on the road.
Saturday’s game saw Ervin Santana allow just two runs in six innings to get his 11th win for the Twins. His bullpen pitched three scoreless innings as well. Joe Musgrove allowed four runs in five innings to fall to 4-8 for Houston. Brian Dozier had a pair of hits, including his 15th home run of the season to lead the Twins. Eddie Rosario also had two hits and drove in two runs in the win. Houston was led by Jose Altuve, who had his 14th home run of 2017.
I liked the Twins for the upset on Saturday thanks to their pitching, but it is their pitching that is the reason I am picking the Astros today. Gibson has been a disaster for the most part this season and he should definitely struggle on the road against this Houston lineup. The Twins had to use their top bullpen arms yesterday as well, so don’t expect them to bail Gibson out today. Fiers should be just fine at home.
MLB DAILY PREDICTION: HOUSTON ASTROS -190