The Houston Astros will play host to the Seattle Mariners on Monday. After dropping Saturday's game against the Kansas City Rolyals, the Astros came back to win the series on Sunday. They will have a short turnaround to face a division opponent, but they'll be home where they're 14-6 this year. Seattle is coming off an intense series against the Texas Rangers where all games were decided by one run, in which they took two of three. The 24-30 Seattle Mariners have now won six of their last nine games and will look to keep the momentum alive against the 35-19 Houston Astros. On the other side, with six wins in seven games, Houston poses a formidable challenge for the visiting Mariners.
"Ty France has reached base 95 times this season (1st in MLB)." - @ Danny Vietti
Robbie Ray gets the ball for Seattle, and he is 4-6, with a 4.93 ERA through 11 starts. Seattle hoped Ray would be the true ace they were looking for after giving him a $115 million contract, but so far, the 2021 American League Cy Young Award winner has been terrible to start the season. Ray has given up at least four runs in three of his last four starts, and he has been particularly bad on the road. Ray is 2-4 with a 5.86 ERA when pitching away from home in 2022. Seattle has a poor bullpen, so Ray has to do more than strike out hitters and instead reverse the average exit velocity that he's currently allowing, where he ranks in the bottom 15th percentile in the MLB. In addition, the Astros have the 10th best slugging percentage in baseball this year, and regardless of Carlos Correa's departure, it still is a tough lineup to navigate.
Taking the mound for Houston is Cristian Javier, who is 3-2 with a 2.41 ERA. In his last 15 2/3 innings of work, Javier has allowed only two earned runs. Now, he faces a Mariners team that he quieted back on May 3. In what was a 4-0 win for the Astros, Javier pitched 5 1/3 scoreless innings, surrendering only two hits in perhaps his best start of the season. He is now 2-1 at home in 2022 with a 0.38 ERA. Seattle is led by Ty France, who is seventh in the majors with a .332 average. Despite France's great numbers, the team is just 22nd in runs scored at 4.1.
"Cristian Javier. 94-mph fastseam + 81-mph slider w/ overlay." - @ Apollow Media
Javier has allowed one run or fewer in four of his last five starts and is backed by a bullpen with a 2.64 ERA, the best in the league, so it will be a tough task for the Mariners on Monday night.
Houston Astros vs. Seattle Mariners Match Details
Fixture: Seattle Mariners @ Houston Astros
Date & Time: Monday, June 6, 8:10 p.m. EDT
Venue: Minute Maid Park, Houston, TX
Houston Astros vs. Seattle Mariners Betting Odds
For the Astros, the total has gone under in 10 of their previous 11 at home. The under has also been reached in all of Seattle's last six games against teams with winning records, and additionally, it's gone under in eight of Houston's last nine games against teams with lefty starters.
Houston Astros vs. Seattle Mariners Best Picks
Jose Altuve has four extra-base hits off of Ray in his career in 14 at-bats, and this version of Robbie Ray has been a lot worse than in previous years. Look for the Astros second baseman to have a solid day at the plate in the opener.
Pick: Jose Altuve Over 1.5 Total Bases (-115)
Houston Astros vs. Seattle Mariners Betting Prediction
While the Astros have been great this season, they haven't done it through high scoring or slugfests. Due to their pitching, they usually do not need to put up a lot of runs, and with Javier on the bump, this may ring true again. Expect the Astros righty to dominate Seattle once again in what will be their 10th matchup of the season.
Prediction: Houston Astros ML (-164) & Under 8 Runs (-106)