Friday hosts a pair of games that’ll definitely whet your baseball appetite. Over at Minute Maid Park, the Minnesota Twins (69-64) will look to get back on track against the Houston Astros (73-61) for the first clash of their three-game set. Following shortly, the top two teams in the National League Central — the Pittsburgh Pirates (79-52) and St. Louis Cardinals (86-47)—begin their own three-game series at Busch Stadium.
Read on below for a quick preview of these two mouth-watering matchups. And if you’re craving for more baseball action, check out our in-depth breakdown between the Texas Rangers and Los Angeles Angels. Enjoy.
[sc:MLBArticles ]Minnesota Twins vs. Houston Astros (8:10 PM ET)
Line: Minnesota Twins (+160) vs. Houston Astros (-180); total: 8.0 – view all MLB lines
[sc:MLB240banner ]The Twins’ Mike Pelfrey (6-8, 3.85 ERA) faces Houston for the second straight time tonight after yielding four earned runs on seven hits over 3 2/3 frames to pick up the 4-1 loss on Sunday night. But avenging this defeat may prove to be a tough task for him, as he’s been pretty awful on the road this season. Pelfrey has a 2-5 record, a 5.59 ERA and a .351 opponents’ batting average across 13 road starts.
As for the Astros, they’ll be countering with Collin McHugh (14-7, 3.92 ERA), who aims for his 15th win of the year. He’s fresh off a solid outing against the Yankees on August 26, during which he tossed 6 1/3 innings of two-run ball to capture the 6-2 victory. Over 13 home starts, he is 9-3 with a 4.20 ERA and 1.30 WHIP.
The Twins are 6-4 in Pelfrey’s last 10 turns, while the Astros are 5-5 with McHugh starting in the same stretch.
Writer’s Prediction
Houston (-180) wins, 4-0.
Pittsburgh Pirates vs. St. Louis Cardinals (8:15 PM ET)
Line: Pittsburgh Pirates (+130) vs. St. Louis Cardinals (-140); total: 7.5– view all MLB lines
It’s been all smiles lately for the Pirates with J.A. Happ (7-7, 4.10 ERA) on the mound. In Happ’s past four turns, he’s allowed only two earned runs in 23 innings of work to garner three-straight wins. But this impressive run is in grave danger of coming to an end this evening, as he is 1-8 with a dismal 6.70 ERA through 10 career starts opposite the Cardinals. And on the road this season, Happ’s been terrible as well with a 3-4 record and a 5.14 ERA.
St.Louis, meanwhile, gives the ball to Carlos Martinez (13-6, 2.91 ERA), who had his last scheduled start pushed back due to back issues. He’ll be coming in after an eight-day rest, while carrying a 6-3 win-loss record and a 3.14 ERA over 13 games (12 starts) at Busch Stadium this year.
The Pirates have not lost in Happ’s previous four turns. The Cardinals, on the other hand, are 4-2 in their last six games with Martinez starting.
Writer’s Prediction
St. Louis (-140) wins 2-0.
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