The Los Angeles Angels (30-27) and Houston Astros (32-23) meet Thursday to kick off a 4-game series. First pitch from Minute Maid Park is set for 8:10 p.m. ET (FS1). Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the Angels vs. Astros odds and make our expert MLB picks and predictions for the best bets.
Season series: Astros lead 2-1
Los Angeles won 12-5 as +126 road underdogs Wednesday vs. Chicago White Sox. That win came because of a 4-HR game by the Angels, 2 by DH Shohei Ohtani. The Angels never trailed after taking the lead in the 1st inning.
Houston lost 8-2 as -179 home favorites Wednesday vs. Minnesota Twins. The Astros never led and could never even make the game close, despite 2 HRs in the 8th inning. SP Hunter Brown gave up 5 ER and 6 H in only 4 2/3 IP during the loss.
The Angels are 2-3 in their last 5 games while the Astros are 3-2 in their last 5.
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Angels at Astros projected starters
LHP Reid Detmers vs. LHP Framber Valdez
Detmers (0-4, 4.93 ERA) makes his 10th start. He has a 1.53 WHIP, 3.7 BB/9 and 11.4 K/9 in 45 2/3 innings.
- Last outing: Loss, 5 IP, 3 ER, 10 H, 2 BB, 5 K, in a 6-2 home loss Friday vs. Miami Marlins
- Career vs. Houston: 1-1 with a 3.98 ERA (20 1/3 IP, 9 ER), 18 H, 3 HR, 9 BB, 21 K in 4 starts
Valdez (5-4, 2.38 ERA) makes his 12th start. He has a 1.04 WHIP, 1.9 BB/9 and 9.6 K/9 in 72 innings.
- Last outing: Win, 6 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, 3 BB, 5 K, in a 6-3 road win Saturday vs. Oakland Athletics
- Career vs. Los Angeles: 8-4 with a 3.73 ERA (89 1/3 IP, 37 ER), 73 H, 9 HR, 45 BB, 100 K in 16 appearances (12 starts)
Angels at Astros odds
Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 10:05 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Angels +155 (bet $100 to win $155) | Astros -190 (bet $190 to win $100)
- Run line (RL)/Against the spread (ATS): Angels +1.5 (-125) | Astros -1.5 (+105)
- Over/Under (O/U): 8.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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Angels at Astros picks and predictions
Prediction
Astros 6, Angels 4
Moneyline
PASS.
The Astros should win this game but as -190 favorites the risk here is not worth the reward. Bet on the run line or O/U instead.
Run line/Against the spread
LEAN ASTROS -1.5 (+105).
Four of the last 10 meetings have finished with a 1-run margin, but the Astros recent dominance suggests that they are the favorite to cover. The Astros are 58-27 in the last 85 meetings overall and 50-24 in the last 74 meetings in Houston.
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Over/Under
BET OVER 8.5 (-110).
For Los Angeles the Over is 4-0 in their last 4 Thursday games, 4-0 in they last 4 road games, and 5-0 in Detmers’ last 5 road starts vs. a team with a winning record. The Over is also 18-8-1 in the last 27 meetings in Houston.
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