Oh, get your popcorn folks! The Houston Astros are going knuckle-to-knuckle with the Los Angeles Angels, right smack in the middle of Angel Stadium. Oh, it's glorious, this field, but let's face it, it's no picnic for the pitchers, tends to favor the guys with the big bats.
Shall we gab about the starting pitchers? Good ol' Justin Verlander is on the mound for the Astros. He has a less than stellar ERA at 5.39 this season but he's still got a bit of his old fire, with 14 appearances. Can't forget about our friend in the red hat, Tyler Anderson for the Angels. Better ERA with 3.62 and 28 appearances this season. We'll see who the better man is when it all comes down to it, won't we?
Houston's bringing to the plate Mauricio Dubon, Mr. No-Homer-Yet, and Yordan Alvarez. Now there's a guy who knows a thing or two about knocking balls out of the park, 8 home runs, and simply dazzling at the bat with a .333 average.
Los Angeles? They're not without their own stars. Taylor Ward, 7 home runs and a respectable .298 batting average. Nolan Schanuel, fewer home runs but showing some speed on bases with 3 steals. This could be an interesting match-up.
Digging into the nostalgia box, their past meetings have been a roller-coaster. Just last year, 3 of 5 games fell in favor of the Astros. Their most recent dance, Astros lead by 2.
Coming fresh out from their regular season, the Astros edge out with a more impressive record at 79-68, compared to the Angels' rather sorrowful 60-87 trek.
Reviewing the recent match history can sometimes feel like reading tea leaves, but it's clear that both teams have been a mixed bag, though the Astros do have an edge in their most recent match.
Verlander's shaky stats put a slight damper on my enthusiasm, though the Astros' beefy batting could turn the tide. An obvious choice for the faint hearted would be Astros but for those who like a little spice in life, the Angels could make a decent go of it. The odds, are however, leaning toward the guys from Houston.
Albert’s Prediction: Houston Astros by 2