Astros vs. Dodgers Pick
Are the Houston Astros going to clinch their first-ever World Series title Wednesday night in Game 7 with an upset win at the Los Angeles Dodgers? Game time is 8:20PM EST.
Oddsmakers at sports book Bovada.lv have listed the Dodgers as a -157 favorite to win on the moneyline. The Astros are a +137 underdog, while the over-under is 7.5 runs.
Game 6 saw the Dodgers prevail 3-1 Tuesday night at home to even the series at 3-3. The over-under has gone 2-2-2 in the six games. These are the first meetings between the two teams since 2015.
Pitching for the Astros will be Lance McCullers Jr. (7-4, 4.25 ERA), while the Dodgers counter with Yu Darvish (10-12, 3.86). McCullers is 1-0 in the postseason with an ERA of 2.95 in 18 1/3 innings. He allowed three earned runs on four hits with three strikeouts and four walks over 5 1/3 innings in a 5-3 win over Los Angeles in Game 3. He was 3-4 on the road with a 5.14 ERA in 68 1/3 innings during the regular season. Darvish has a 4.15 ERA and 1.23 WHIP over three postseason starts, encompassing 13 innings. He was shelled for four earned runs on six hits with no strikeouts and one walk over 1 2/3 innings in the Game 3 loss. Darvish is 4-8 with a 5.25 ERA in 94 1/3 home innings this season.
Houston ace Dallas Keuchel and Los Angeles superstar Clayton Kershaw will both be available for use out of the bullpen.
In Game 6, the Dodgers scored twice in the sixth and one in the seventh inning to propel their way to the victory. Chris Taylor was 1-for-4 with an RBI double, while Joc Pederson hit a solo home run. Corey Seager also had an RBI. Austin Barnes was 1-for-3 with a run. Tony Watson earned the win in relief, while Kenley Jansen threw 19 pitches to pick up the save. Justin Verlander allowed two earned runs on three hits with nine strikeouts and no walks plus a hit batter over six innings to take the loss. George Springer finished 2-for-3 with a solo home run in the third inning plus a walk to pace the Astros. Marwin Gonzalez added a double.
Houston is 55-34 on the road this season. Los Angeles is 79-35 after a win this season.
Houston hammered Darvish, who didn’t have a feel for several of his pitches during his brief Game 3 outing. He’s been poor at home this season and it would be huge for Houston if it can get to him early again. That would probably lead to Kershaw, who doesn’t have a great postseason history when on short rest. He’s been prone to giving up the long ball this month and could serve up one or two more to the collection of Astros power bats. McCullers has been fairly effective during the playoffs, giving Houston a chance to win which it did in his last start versus LA. He’ll eventually give way to the likes of Keuchel, Brad Peacock and possibly Chris Devenski or Will Harris. Don’t expect to see the erratic Ken Giles in a winner-take-all game. The Astros are underdogs here, but are a great team in their own right and fully capable of getting the job done. Before the World Series, we picked the Astros to win the World Series and now is the time to stick to our guns.
MLB DAILY PREDICTION: HOUSTON ASTROS +137