Written By: Evan Perkins
The Boston Red Sox (66-59) and Houston Astros (68-57) will settle their tiebreaker in their three-game series finale on Wednesday, August 21, at 2:10 PM ET at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas. The Astros currently are favored with a moneyline at -150.
The Red Sox broke their two-game skid with a recent 6-5 victory over the Astros in Game 2 of the series. Jarren Duran was perfect on all four hits that night and had the tie-breaking home run in the eighth to seal it.
They are currently third in the American League East and are roughly seven games behind the leading Baltimore Orioles. Adding wins against quality teams will help boost their confidence for this season's stretch.
They have gone 5-5 over their last 10 games. The biggest surprise is that they have a losing record at home and are 37-27 on the road. Being barely above .500 altogether is challenging to build on when pitching has issues.
So far, the Red Sox are averaging .262 at the plate and allowing .248 in return. While this is a solid difference between the two stats, they need more separation.
The Astros' three-game win streak was snapped with the recent loss to the Red Sox. This series has been one nail-biter after another, with each game decided by one run.
They lead the AL West, with the next team in line being the Seattle Mariners (by 4.5 games). This battle will be a perfect test to see if they have what it takes to close out a tough series.
The Astros have excellent momentum, so this series will still go their way. They currently have a 35-28 record at home, which shows that they typically play their best when they are here.
At the plate, they produce a .261 batting average and give up in return a .230 batting average. With the Red Sox starting Cooper Criswell (5-4, ERA 4.56, WHIP 1.36) on the mound, they have a solid chance at success with exciting talent on the other side with Justin Verlander (3-2, ERA 3.95, WHIP).
MyBookie has brought you the MLB betting odds for the Boston Red Sox vs. Houston Astros showdown. Currently, the Astros are favored to close it out strong at home, with market insights suggesting they have a 61.6 percent chance of succeeding.
This should be another close battle, with the game likely being decided by two runs or less. The slightest edge goes to the Astros being at home and arguably a better-starting pitcher to put them on a map to victory.
