- By: Willie Bee
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All aboard! The Houston Express is steaming as June winds down, and the Astros look to keep win train rolling on Saturday’s baseball betting card with a matinee against the Detroit Tigers.
Houston Astros vs. Detroit Tigers
Saturday, June 26, 2021 – 4:10 PM EDT at Comerica ParkAll Odds for this Matchup
Houston grabbed the series opener with a decisive 12-3 Thursday final, the 11th-straight time the Astros were on the good side of MLB scores. Carlos Correa reached base five times and drove in three, while Yordan Alvarez added 5 RBI to his ledger. Game 2 of the set was still in progress at press, and Houston was a heavy favorite to make it 12-straight wins to tie a club record accomplished twice before.
Assuming they can get the dubya Friday, the Astros are favored to set a new franchise record Saturday when Lance McCullers Jr. (4-1, 2.90) is on the hill against Detroit’s Casey Mize (4-4, 3.61). BetOnline (visit out BetOnline Review) sent Houston out on a -205 moneyline to start the wagering proceedings.
‘Stros Outscoring Opposition 93-22
It’s not like Alex Bregman is going to have to earn Houston’s third base job back when he returns from a quad injury, but he also hasn’t been missed that much in the lineup thanks to contributions from Abraham Toro. The 5th-round pick in 2016 has delivered offensively and defensively, and is himself auditioning for the starting third base job next season when Bregman shifts to shortstop after Correa departs via free agency.Since returning from about a 3-week absence due to shoulder soreness, McCullers has looked sound in two starts. The one issue has been walks, seven total in the outings covering a combined 10.1 innings. Still, he limited batters to just five hits in the contests, and the Astros came out on the winning end both times. His most recent assignment was last Sunday against a tough White Sox lineup, McCullers picking up the dubya as -135 chalk on the MLB odds to complete a sweep of Chicago.
McCullers didn’t look so good in an April start against the Tigers, Houston falling 6-4 at home as -180 chalk. He was chased in the fourth having allowed all six Detroit runs, and two of the three free passes McCullers issued came around to score. Saturday is his third career start at Comerica, the 27-year-old splitting the previous two (11 IP, 7 ER).
Tigers Hitters 2nd in Majors in Strikeouts
Scoring continues to be a problem for the Tigers who sit next-to-last in the AL – and 24th in the majors – averaging just under four runs a game. Detroit posted a respectable 11 hits in the series opener on Thursday, with leadoff hitter Akil Baddoo enjoying a 3-hit performance, but the lineup was a puny 3-for-13 with runners in scoring position, and more than 10 batters per game are returning to the dugout with Ks on their scorecard.If nothing else, Mize has been consistent this month by allowing exactly three runs in all four of his starts. He’s also been consistent giving up the long ball, six in June after serving up just seven in his first 10 assignments. Detroit has given him just enough offense to win Mize’s last two starts, the latest this past Sunday in Anaheim where Mize and the Tigers were +145 underdogs at the best online betting sites.
Mize looked like the ace he’s projected to be when taking on the Astros in Houston back in April. The former Auburn standout posted goose eggs over seven innings in a 6-2 triumph on a big +225 moneyline. It was Mize’s first career victory, and the only time he has faced the Astros in his brief career.
Umpire Notes, Motown Forecast and a Free Pick
Mike Muchlinski lines up to call balls and strikes in the third game of the series. Now in his 16th big league season, Muchlinski stands 7-4-1 O/U/P in his first dozen plate assignments of 2021, with home underdogs splitting his two games falling into that category. The Tacoma native has seen three of his last four contests at the dish in Detroit go past the totals.Mother Nature might prevent Houston from equaling a club record for consecutive wins on Friday, and the rain lingers into Saturday. Assuming they can get the game in, it’s going to be damp at the very least and the potential is there for a stiff 12-15 mph SW wind (in from right).
Having been a fan of the old Colt 45s and Astros since their inception in 1962, I have never witnessed as dominating a stretch as they are on right now. That includes their trash-can bangin’ days of 2017. It just seems like a good time to try and outsmart the streak with a free MLB pick on the Motown Cats.
MLB Pick: Tigers +188 at BetOnline (visit out BetOnline Review)
