The Houston Astros are tied for first place in the AL West with the Texas Rangers, with just five games remaining in the regular season. Houston will take the field against its division rival, the Seattle Mariners, in a pivotal matchup with a chance to take sole possession of first place in their division. Ethan Pecko will start things off for the Astros, who enters with a 1-0 record and a 3.77 ERA. For the Mariners, George Kirby will get the nod, entering with a 9-11 record and a 4.24 ERA.
Both teams have struggled as of late, but Houston does hold the edge with Pecko on the mound. The Astros have lost seven of their last 10 games, averaging just 3.3 runs per game with a .230 batting average, while the Mariners are averaging 5.3 runs with a .268 average over the same span. Seattle would love nothing more than to play spoiler in this matchup, but Kirby hasn’t exactly been dominant, going 1-1 with a 4.55 ERA in his last five games. At the end of the day, Houston has much more at stake in this matchup. Look for the Astros to get their offense going and keep their playoff hopes alive.
Astros vs Mariners prediction: Astros ML (+108) available at time of publishing. Playable up to -110.
