The Houston Astros come into tonight’s contest at Minute Maid Park with eight wins in their last 11 outings and will look to keep rolling when J.P. France faces a struggling Los Angeles Angels team who own just two victories over their last 10 games.
France enters play with wins in four straight games and will look to extend his run against Los Angeles’ slumping offense. Find out if Houston’s starter can get it done in our free MLB picks and predictions for Angels vs. Astros on Saturday, August 12.
Angels vs Astros odds
Angels vs Astros predictions
The Houston Astros rolled to a dominating 11-3 win in the series opener on Friday as Jon Singleton homered twice and drove in five runs to help Justin Verlander pick up a win in his 500th career start.
It was another weak offensive performance for the Los Angeles Angels, who despite owning the seventh-best offense in the MLB this season (4.87 runs per game), are averaging 3.70 runs during their current 10-game skid. Los Angeles has now scored more than three runs just four times during the 2-8 run and just five times over its last 14 games.
Meanwhile, the Astros will send J.P. France to the mound, and he's been unbeatable over the last month and a half. The right-hander has held opponents to two runs or fewer in six of his last seven starts while posting a 6-0 record as well as a stingy 1.73 ERA during that stretch.
France has already faced the Angels twice this season, holding them to just three earned runs over 11.1 innings. I’m banking on the Astros starter to keep his hot streak going while limiting Los Angeles to another low-scoring effort on Saturday.
My best bet: Angels team total Under 4.5 (-140 at DraftKings)
Angels vs Astros same-game parlay
Angels team total Under 4.5 (-135)
Astros team total Over 5.5 (+145)
Altuve 2+ total bases (-105)
While the Angels' offense has gone downhill, the Astros are trending the other way with 39 runs scored over the last week — the second-best mark in the majors at an average of 7.80 runs per game. Houston has scored at least seven runs in five of its last seven contests, so the Astros should be able to run up the score again against a struggling lefty like Tyler Anderson and his 4.92 ERA this evening.
We’ll also bank on two or more total bases from Jose Altuve to round out the same-game parlay as the Astros leadoff man has been red hot in August, batting .421 with hits in 13 straight games. He’s recorded multiple bases in three straight games and five of his last seven outings, so look for Houston's leadoff man to keep that hot streak going tonight.
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Angels vs Astros moneyline and Over/Under analysis
The Astros opened as the chalk at -177 on the moneyline and it’s hard to see a reason to go against the home favorites tonight. They're one of the hottest teams and now face a slumping Los Angeles club that’s fallen well out of the Wild Card race.
The defending World Series champs also have a clear edge on the mound and at the plate and are winners of eight of their last 10 meetings against the Angels.
Tonight’s total opened at 9 runs and climbed to 9.5 at most books by Saturday morning. With Houston scoring nearly eight runs per game over the last week, I’m liking the Over in this one. These clubs have also tended to put on high-scoring games, combining for at least 12 runs in each of their last four meetings and five of their last six.
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Trend to know
The Over is 6-1 in the last seven meetings between these two teams. Find more MLB betting trends for Angels vs. Astros
Angels vs Astros game info
| Location: | Minute Maid Park, Houston, TX |
| Date: | Saturday, August 12, 2023 |
| First pitch: | 7:15 p.m. ET |
| TV: | FOX |
Starting pitchers
Tyler Anderson (5-3, 4.92 ERA): Anderson had a rough time through his first three months of the season but finally rebounded in July with a 3.28 ERA over five starts. The southpaw held the Mariners to two hits and two earned runs over five innings of work in his last outing.
J.P. France (8-3, 2.75 ERA): France had his shortest outing of the season in his last start, albeit 3 1/3 scoreless innings against the Yankees. The first-year pitcher is coming off his best month of the season as he posted a 2.30 ERA through five starts in July.
