Seattle Mariners vs. Houston Astros Betting Preview

Monday night begins a huge three-game series between AL West rivals as the Seattle Mariners (75-62) take on the Houston Astros (79-57). The Astros will host this one at Minute Maid Park, with first pitch scheduled for 7:10 pm ET.

These are the top two teams in the division as the Mariners trail the Astros by 4.5 games. A sweep could get the Mariners right back into the division hunt while the Astros are trying to create separation.

Over the weekend, the Mariners were able to sweep their series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. On Sunday, it took 11 innings for the Mariners to win, but they were able to pour it on in extras as the final score was 10-4.

The Astros had a much tougher weekend as they faced the Monday night begins a huge three-game series between AL West rivals as the Seattle Mariners (75-62) take on the Houston Astros (79-57). on the road. After winning the first game, they dropped the last two to lose the series.

The Astros are the favorites playing at home. They are -225 to win while the Mariners’ moneyline sits at +188. The runline features Seattle +1.5 (-113), and the over/under for total runs is 8.5.

Pitching Matchup

The Seattle Mariners will turn to lefty Yusei Kikuchi in Monday’s contest. On the season, he is 7-7 with a 4.12 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, and has struck out 149 in 144.1 innings pitched.

The Houston Astros will counter with Lance McCullers Jr. He is 10-4 with a 3.20 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, and has struck out 154 in 132.1 innings pitched.

This will actually be the third time these two have faced off in just the last few weeks. On August 20, it was McCullers who got the upper hand as Kikuchi lasted just 2.2 innings after giving up seven runs. August 31st was Kikuchi’s day to shine, though, as he went seven innings of shutout baseball.

By The Number

Offensively, Houston has been one of the best teams in baseball. They rank second in scoring averaging 5.24 runs per game. In their last three games, though, they are averaging just 2.67 runs. The Mariners rank 23rd, averaging 4.21 runs per game.

On the defensive side, it is once again Houston with the advantage. They rank seventh in the majors in scoring defense, allowing opponents an average of four runs per game. The Mariners rank 17th allowing 4.59 runs per game.

Final Chance For Seattle To Face Astros

While Seattle still has 25 games remaining, these are the last three times they will face the Astros this season. Trying to catch them in the division, this series is crucial for Seattle to win, if not sweep.

The division is not the only way that Seattle can get into the playoffs, though. Coming into play Monday, they sit three games behind the Boston Red Sox for the second wild card spot.

Leading the way for the Mariners’ offense is Kyle Seager. While he is only hitting .213/.288/.454, he currently leads the team in home runs (33) and runs batted in (93).

Seager also has a lot of success against McCullers Jr. In 38 at-bats, and he is hitting .263 with three home runs and five runs batted in off the righty.

Astros Look For Separation Playing At Home

While a 4.5 game lead seems comfortable enough for a division leader at this point in the season, the Astros still know that a cold streak can quickly put them on the outside looking in. For that reason, Houston will look to take advantage of a 41-25 home record to beat Seattle and create a little more separation in the division.

Unfortunately, it is unclear if one of the Astros’ best hitters will be available for Monday’s game. After fouling a ball off his knee Saturday, Yordan Alvarez had to be helped off the field and sat out of Sunday’s game.

While x-rays came back negative, he is day-to-day, and Monday’s status is unclear. This season, Alvarez is hitting .282/.346/.535 with 28 home runs and 89 runs batted in. He also has two home runs against Kikuchi in his career.

Yuli Gurriel also has some success against Kikuchi in his career. In 19 at-bats, Gurriel is hitting .263 with a couple of home runs and four runs batted in.

Take The Mariners And The Runs

The last two times Kikuchi has faced the Astros, it seemed like two very different pitchers were on the mound. In one start, he was absolutely shelled, while the other, he was practically unhittable.

That makes this one all the tougher to analyze. However, with Seattle in desperation mode as they fight for a postseason spot, expect the Mariners to put a lot of pressure on McCullers and the Astros.

It is unclear whether they can beat Houston in the opener, but taking Seattle at +1.5 on the runline seems like a smart bet.