The Minnesota Twins and the Houston Astros meet in game two of the ALDS in MLB action from Minute Maid Park on Sunday.

Twins Fall Short In Opener

The Minnesota Twins dropped the series opener on Saturday thanks to a 6-4 loss. Jorge Polanco went 2 for 5 with a three-run home run while Royce Lewis added a solo homer as all four of Minnesota’s runs in game one came via the long ball. Carlos Correa went 2 for 4 with a double and Ryan Jeffers went 2 for 4 as well while Edouard Julien and Max Kepler each had a double to cap off the offense for the Twins in the losing effort. Bailey Ober took the loss, falling to 0-1 in the postseason after allowing three runs on four hits with just two strikeouts over three innings of work. Pablo Lopez will start for Minnesota here and is 1-0 with a 1.59 ERA and 3 strikeouts in the playoffs.

Minnesota Twins Team Facts

The Twins have won each of their last six games as underdogs against AL West opponents following a loss.
The Twins have covered the run line in each of their last eight games following a road loss.
The Twins have trailed after 5 innings in each of their last six night playoff games.
The Twins have lost the first inning in each of their last three road games against AL West opponents.
The ‘Inning 1 OVER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Twins’ last three games as underdogs against AL West opponents.

Minnesota Twins Player Prop Facts

Jorge Polanco has hit a home run in each of his last two appearances at Minute Maid Park against AL West opponents that held a winning record.
Kyle Farmer has recorded at least one RBI in each of his last four appearances in night games.
Max Kepler has scored at least one run in each of the Twins’ last 12 night games.
Pablo Lopez has recorded six or more strikeouts in 11 of his last 12 road appearances against AL opponents.
Carlos Correa has recorded at least one total base in each of the Twins’ last 12 road games against AL opponents that held a winning record.
Carlos Correa has recorded at least one hit in each of the Twins’ last 12 road games against AL opponents that held a winning record.
Pablo Lopez ranks T3rd in the league for total Strikeouts (234) this season.

Astros Start Postseason With A Bang

The Houston Astros come into this one after starting their postseason run with their win on Saturday. Jose Altuve belted a solo home run to start the game while Yordan Alvarez went 2 for 3 with a pair of home runs and three RBIs. Jose Abreu and Chas Mccormick each had an RBI to cap off the scoring for Houston in the win while Kyle Tucker added a double. Michael Brantley, Jeremy Pena and Alex Bregman each had a base hit as well to finish off Houston’s offense as a team in the victory. Justin Verlander got the win with six shutout innings, allowing just four hits with six strikeouts and Ryan Pressly closed out the 9th for the save. Framber Valdez will start for the Astros here and was 12-11 with a 3.45 ERA and 200 strikeouts in the regular season.

Houston Astros Team Facts

The Astros have lost each of their last four games as home favorites after playing the previous day.
The Astros have covered the run line in each of their last six playoff games as favorites against AL Central opponents.
The Astros have led after 7 innings in each of their last five games against opponents that held a winning record.
The Astros have lost the first inning in each of their last three night games against AL Central opponents.
The ‘Inning 1 OVER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Astros’ last seven home games.

Houston Astros Player Prop Facts

Yordan Alvarez has hit at least one home run in four of the Astros’ last five games against AL opponents.
Yordan Alvarez has recorded at least one RBI in eight of the Astros’ last nine games against AL Central opponents.
Jose Altuve has scored at least one run in each of the Astros’ last seven playoff games as favorites against AL Central opponents.
Framber Valdez has recorded five or more strikeouts in each of his last seven appearances with the Astros as favorites against AL opponents.
Jeremy Pena has recorded a hit in each of the Astros’ last 11 playoff games as favorites.
Yordan Alvarez has recorded two or more total bases in each of the Astros’ last nine games against AL Central opponents.

Matchup/League Facts

The Houston Astros rank 3rd in the league for hits this season (1441).
The Houston Astros rank 3rd in the league for strikeouts against this season (1241).
The Minnesota Twins rank 30th in the league for strikeouts against this season (1654).
The Minnesota Twins rank 1st in the league for strikeouts this season (1560).

Chris’ Pick

I’m on the under here. Pablo Lopez was solid in the opener and has been at his best on the road for much of the season while Framber Valdez has had his ups and downs this season but has been a shutdown pitcher in the postseason for much of his career. We saw a lot of runs on Saturday but I think Sunday’s lower-scoring. Give me the under.