Indians vs. Astros Series Preview, Betting Odds, Predictions

Two American League postseason contenders will square off this weekend as the Houston Astros (48-33) square off with the Cleveland Indians (42-35). The Indians will host this four-game series at Progressive Field starting on Thursday.

Coming into play Thursday, the Astros are reeling from a three-game sweep at the hands of the Baltimore Orioles. In the finale Wednesday, the Astros lost 5-2. In the loss, Luis Garcia went just four innings, giving up four runs while striking out five. Houston’s offense could muster just two runs on five hits.

Cleveland also struggled to start out the week as they dropped two of three to the Detroit Tigers. After taking the first game Monday, the Indians dropped a doubleheader on Wednesday. The Indians lost 9-4 and 7-1 in the two games.

Schedule

The schedule for the four-game series at Progressive Field is as follows:

• Thursday, July 1 - 7:10 pm ET
• Friday, July 2 - 7:10 pm ET
• Saturday, July 3 - 7:15 pm ET
• Sunday, July 4 - 1:10 pm ET

Pitching Matchup

Here is the pitching matchup for each game of the series:

• Thursday: Framber Valdez (4-1, 2.11 ERA) vs. J.C. Mejia (1-2, 4.94 ERA)
• Friday: Lance McCullers Jr. (5-1, 2.94 ERA) vs. Sam Hentges (1-2, 7.32 ERA)
• Saturday: Jake Odorizzi (2-3, 4.08 ERA) vs. Eli Morgan (1-2, 9.37 ERA)
• Sunday: Greinke (8-2, 3.65 ERA) vs. TBD

Looking At Odds

Sitting atop the A.L. West by half a game over the Athletics, the Astros are currently -290 to win the division. They sit at +600 to win the World Series, second-best odds behind the Dodgers.

Currently second in the A.L. Central, four games behind the White Sox, the Indians are +450 to win the division. They are +5000 to win it all this year.

By The Numbers

Offensively, the Astros have one of the best teams in baseball this season. In fact, they rank first in runs per game (5.65), hits per game (9.56), batting average (.277), and on-base percentage (.352). 

Cleveland currently ranks 14th in scoring averaging 4.43 runs per game.

Defensively, it is once again the Astros with the slight edge. They rank ninth in scoring defense allowing opponents an average of 4.03 runs per game. The Indians rank 15th, allowing 4.36 runs per game.

Astros Look To Starting Pitching, Bats To Get Them Out Of Funk

The weakest part of the Astros this season has been their bullpen, and that showed over the series with the Orioles. Having to pitch 16.2 innings, the bullpen gave up a combined 19 runs. With the bullpen so suspect, the Astros will look to strong starting pitching and their bats to get them back on track.

Offensively, the Astros have gotten plenty of production up and down the lineup. In fact, they have five players with double-digit home runs as Jose Altuve (17), Carlos Correa (15), Yordan Alvarez (13), Kyle Tucker (13), and Yuli Gurriel (10) have all gotten off to nice starts.

Michael Brantley, the former Indian, has also been sensational this season, hitting .340/.383/.492 with four home runs, 30 runs batted in, and 39 runs scored.

The Astros will likely be without a couple of their key starters for this one. Alex Bregman (quad) is out for the foreseeable future, while starting catcher Martin Maldanado was put on the bereavement list on Wednesday.

Indians Hoping To Get By As Starting Pitching Is On The Mend

Unfortunately for Cleveland, their bread and butter, their starting pitching, has been hit with the injury bug as of late. Most notably, Shane Bieber and Aaron Civale are currently on the injured list. As they are looking to different arms to fill the rotation, the Indians are trying to stay competitive in the A.L. Central.

On the offensive side, Bobby Bradley has been one of their hottest hitters over the last week. Despite hitting just .238/.304/.714 in that span, he has three home runs and five runs batted in.

On the season, it is Jose Ramirez that has led the offensive attack. He currently leads the team in home runs (18), runs batted in (50), and runs scored (53).

Cesar Hernandez has also performed admirably. He is hitting just .221/.299/.395, but he has 12 home runs, 30 runs batted in, and 47 runs scored this season.

Indians Hope To Pounce On Struggling Astros

The Indians may be catching Houston at the right time. While the pitching matchups favor Houston on paper, they have looked out of sorts as of late, and their bullpen is a trainwreck.

If the Indians’ pitchers can limit the damage by the Astros’ offense, and the Indians can get into Houston’s weak bullpen, Cleveland has a good chance of stealing the four-game series.