Miami Marlins vs Houston Astros Prediction & Picks - MLB

Prediction published on 7/8/24, 6:05 PM  by Carlos Zabala | Modified on 7/8/24 at 6:37 PM in MLB Picks

Astros finally lost a tough series in a close Game 3 against the Twins. Before that, the Astros had won 6 series in a row, in that streak all their victories were by 2 or more runs difference. Astros have the perfect opportunity to continue winning against the Marlins in the penultimate series before the all-star break. Astros are 1st in collective AVG in MLB with 264 and after a slow start they are already 9th in home runs with 104. Marlins, on the contrary, are the team with the fewest HRs with just 71, and with the worst OBP in MLB of 282 they are characterized by be an easily controllable offense.

Still, the Marlins were able to win the series against the only team with a worse record than them, the White Sox. They made 7 runs in the last game thanks to Burger's 3-run HR. Burger, with this HR, puts himself within 1 of reaching 10, but he will hardly achieve the 34 homers he hit in 2023. 

Astros' odds to win are -200, also due to the pitching duel. Blanco will open for Astros, having a good season and with a record of 8-3. While Rogers will pitch for the Marlins, who took the L 9 times this season and had his shortest pitch of the season having pitched only 3.0 IP against the Red Sox.