LA Angels (18-29) vs. Houston Astros (21-26)
May 20, 2024 8:10 pm EDT
The Line: Houston Astros -200 / LA Angels +170; Over/Under: +8.5
(Get latest betting odds)
In this article we will formulate a Houston Astros vs LA Angels prediction for this MLB game on Monday, May 20th at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas. Let’s take a look at the prediction for game one in the series.
Astros Looking to Stay Hot
The Houston Astros are 21-26 this season and they have won seven of their last eight games. Houston is coming off of a series win against Milwaukee, where they won two out of three games and scored 16 runs. Prior to that series, the Astros swept Oakland in four games, won two out of three against Detroit, and lost two out of three against the Yankees. Houston started the season playing pretty poorly, but they have won nine of their last eleven games and they are third in the AL West behind Seattle and Texas.
The Houston pitching staff has a 4.54 ERA, a 1.40 WHIP, and a .250 opponent batting average. The Astros offense has scored 216 runs with a .265 batting average and a .331 on base percentage. Kyle Tucker is batting .287 with 15 home runs and 33 RBI’s for the Astros this season. Houston is 26th in team ERA this year, but they have allowed three runs or fewer in seven of their last eleven games.
Angels Gaining Momentum
The Los Angeles Angels are 18-29 this year and they have won three of their last four games. Los Angeles is coming off of a series win against Texas, where they won two out of three games and out scored them 15-7 in the series. Prior to that series victory, the Angels lost two out of three against St. Louis, lost three out of four against Kansas City, and won two out of three against Pittsburgh. Los Angeles has lost 15 of their last 23 games and they are currently last in the AL West behind Seattle, Texas, Houston, and Oakland.
The Los Angeles pitching staff has a 4.55 ERA, a 1.31 WHIP, and a .239 opponent batting average. The Angels offense has scored 203 runs with a .243 batting average and a .307 on base percentage. Taylor Ward is batting .275 with 10 home runs and 28 RBI’s for the Angels this season. Los Angeles is 15th in runs scored so far this season and they have scored at least four runs in nine of their last twelve games.
Starting Pitchers
The projected starting pitcher for Houston is Framber Valdez, who is 3-1 with a 2.95 goals against average and a 1.20 WHIP over 36.2 innings pitched this year. Valdez has allowed two earned runs or fewer in four of his last five starts, but did allow five earned runs and nine hits against Seattle three starts ago. The projected starting pitcher for Los Angeles is Reid Detmers, who is 3-4 with a 5.19 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP over 50.1 innings pitched this year. Detmers has allowed at least four earned runs in each of his last five starts.
Why the Houston Astros will win
The Angels have lost each of their last 14 games against American League opponents following a road win.
The Astros have won each of their last six games against teams that held a losing record.
The Angels have failed to cover the run line in each of their last eight games as road underdogs against the Astros following a road win.
The Astros have covered the run line in five of their last six games against teams that held a losing record.
The Astros have led after 3 innings in each of their last six games against opponents that held a losing record.
The Astros have led after 5 innings in each of their last six games against opponents that held a losing record.
Total Runs Facts
Five of the Angels’ last six night games as underdogs have gone OVER the total runs line.
Five of the last six games between the Angels and Astros have gone OVER the total runs line.
The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Angels’ last 10 road games.
The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the last four night games between the Angels and Astros.
Houston Astros vs LA Angels Prediction
Houston comes into this series playing their best baseball of the season and they have moved up to third in the AL West, just four games behind Seattle. Los Angeles hasn’t played well over the last few weeks, but they have won three of their last four games. The Angels do a decent job of scoring runs, but their pitching staff has had issues. Detmers is in for a long day here and I think Valdez will have another great start for Houston. My Houston Astros vs LA Angels prediction is for the Astros to win by at least two runs.
