Houston Astros at Seattle Mariners Betting Preview/Prop Picks

AL West rivals meet up for the second straight night on Saturday as the Seattle Mariners host the Houston Astros. Seattle picked up a 6-1 win in the series opener, picking up a win over Justin Verlander in the process. 

Houston is still on top of the AL West Division heading into Saturday, but they are getting some pressure from the Los Angeles Angels. The Astros are 29-17 on the year but have gone just 15-11 on the road. 

Seattle enters play on Saturday with a record of 19-27, and they are in fourth place in the AL West. The Mariners are expected to be a playoff contender, but they have some serious work to do. 

The Houston Astros are the moneyline betting favorites at -125 for game two of the series on Saturday night. 

Urquidy Taking the Mound

The Houston Astros will turn to Jose Urquidy in an effort to get them back on track. Urquidy has gone 4-1 this season, but he does need to improve on his ERA, that currently sits at 4.24.

Houston has a dominant bullpen, and they can shut the door down if they get an early lead. The Astros have a team ERA of less than 3.00, but they are now facing a lineup that comes into this game with some momentum. 

Kyle Tucker has had a big year at the plate for the Astros as he leads the team with 29 RBIs to go along with eight home runs. There are some Astros players that are going through a big slump, but this team still has power. 

Seattle Shows Some Power

The Mariners belted four home runs in the win over Houston on Saturday night, and that could be a big key in this game as well. Seattle has hit 51 long balls this season, and most of the offensive numbers are actually better than Houston.

Eugenio Suarez and Ty France have been the two best hitters in the lineup, and the Mariners could still use some more depth. Suarez has belted nine home runs, while France is hitting .341 with 32 RBIs.

Logan Gilbert will be making the start on Saturday night, and he is 4-2 with a 2.60 ERA to begin the year. It’s going to take another strong effort to keep the Astros from having a big night at the plate. 

Mariners Make it Happen Again

Beating Justin Verlander on Friday night should give the Mariners some confidence heading into Saturday. That offense hasn’t always been showing up this season, but this could be another great chance for them to break out of it. 

The Mariners have been a much better team in Seattle this season, and the Astros haven’t always played great on the road. This should be a pretty competitive game, but the Mariners might actually have the pitching edge in this game. 

One run might be the difference in this game, and the home team will get the clutch hit late. Bet the Seattle Mariners moneyline as they pick up a second straight win over the Houston Astros with another impressive performance.

Prop Picks

Seattle (-125) UNDER 3.5 Runs

Houston is allowing 3.31 runs per 9 innings on defense, which ranks No. 3 in the league, while holding teams to a .632 OPS, which ranks No. 5. Scores have gone UNDER in five of the Astros’ last seven road games versus Seattle.

With Dunkel predicting a Seattle victory by the score of 3-2, take the Mariners (-125) to finish UNDER their Vegas team total of 3.5 runs against the Astros.

Logan Gilbert (-170) OVER 4.5 Strikeouts

Gilbert has 55 strikeouts in 52 innings pitched (9.5 Ks per 9 innings), which ranks No. 2 on the Mariners. The righthander has 19 Ks in 16.2 innings pitched (8.5 Ks per 9 innings) at home.

With Dunkel predicting a Seattle win with the final score UNDER the Vegas run total, take Gilbert (-170) to finish OVER 4.5 strikeouts versus Houston.

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All Media on this page by Associated Press.