Houston Astros at Tampa Bay Rays MLB Game Picks 3/31/2019

Sunday, March 31, 2019

Tropicana Field

Get todays MLB odds and lines on this game.

Probable Pitchers: Wade Miley vs. Ryan Yarbrough

Tropicana Field is the site of the matchup between the Houston Astros and the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday, March 31, 2019. The probable starting pitchers are Wade Miley for the Astros and Ryan Yarbrough for the Rays.

Houston opens at -123 while Tampa Bay opens at +113. The Astros had a 75-86-9 over/under record and a 87-83-0 run line mark last year. The Rays were 92-70-0 against the run line and had a 73-82-7 over/under record.

Valuable Houston Astros Betting Trends

The Houston Astros were 75-86-9 against the over/under last season

The Houston Astros were 87-83-0 against the run line last year

Important Tampa Bay Rays Betting Trends

The Tampa Bay Rays were 73-82-7 against the over/under last season

The Tampa Bay Rays were 92-70-0 against the run line last year

Key Houston Astros Injuries

03/29/19 SS Carlos Correa Neck is questionable Saturday vs Tampa Bay Rays
03/28/19 P Joe Smith Achilles 60-day IL (03/25)
03/28/19 P Lance McCullers Jr Elbow is out for season

Key Tampa Bay Rays Injuries

03/28/19 P Jose De Leon Elbow 10-day IL (03/28)
03/28/19 3B Matt Duffy Hamstring 10-day IL (03/25)

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Astros had a 103-59 overall record last season. Starting pitcher Wade Miley had a 5-2 record with an earned run average of 2.57 and a WHIP of 1.22. He had 50 strikeouts over his 80.2 innings pitched and he gave up 71 hits. He allowed 7.9 hits per 9 innings and he had a FIP of 3.6. The bullpen had an earned run average of 3.03 and they gave up 393 base hits on the year. Teams hit .212 against the bullpen and they struck out 586 hitters while walking 137 batters. As a team, Houston allowed 7.2 hits per nine innings while striking out 10.4 batters per nine innings. They were 1st in the league in team earned run average at 3.11. The Astros pitchers collectively gave up 1,164 base hits and 503 earned runs last year. They allowed 152 home runs last season, ranking them 29th in the league. Houston as a pitching staff walked 435 batters and struck out 1,687. They walked 2.7 men per 9 innings while striking out 10.4 per 9. They had a team WHIP of 1.10 and their FIP as a unit was 3.24.

Hitting Statistics

As a team Houston hit .255, good for 7th in the league. The Astros held a .425 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .329, which was good for 8th in baseball. They ranked 12th in MLB with 8.6 hits per game. Jose Altuve hit .315 with an on-base percentage of .384 last year. He had 168 hits last season in 534 at bats with 61 runs batted in. He had a slugging percentage of .449 and an OPS+ of 132. Alex Bregman hit .286 last year and he had an on-base percentage of .394. He totaled 170 hits and he drove in 103 men in 594 at bats. His OPS+ was 156 while his slugging percentage was at .532. The Astros had 1,389 hits last season, including 278 doubles and 205 home runs. Houston walked 565 times last year and they struck out 1,197 times as a unit. They left 1,052 men on base and had a team OPS of .754. They scored 4.92 runs per contest and scored a total of 797 runs last year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

Tampa Bay had a 90-72 overall mark last year. With an earned run average of 3.91, Ryan Yarbrough had a 16-6 record and a 1.29 WHIP. He had 128 strikeouts over the 147.1 innings he pitched. He also gave up 140 hits. He allowed 8.6 hits per nine innings and his FIP stood at 4.19. The bullpen had an earned run average of 3.80 and they gave up 718 base hits on the year. Teams hit .231 against the Rays bullpen. Their relievers struck out 754 batters and walked 287 opposing hitters. As a team, Tampa Bay allowed 7.7 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.8 batters per nine innings. They were 5th in the league in team earned run average at 3.74. The Rays pitchers as a team surrendered 1,236 base knocks and 602 earned runs last season. They gave up 164 home runs last year, which ranked 25th in Major League Baseball. Tampa Bay as a staff walked 501 hitters and struck out 1,421 batters. They gave up a walk 3.1 times per 9 innings while they struck out 8.8 per 9. Their team WHIP was 1.20 while their FIP as a staff was 3.82.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they batted .258, good for 4th in the league. The Rays held a .406 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .333, which was good for 4th in baseball. They ranked 5th in MLB with 8.7 hits per contest. Joey Wendle comes into this matchup after batting .300 with an OBP of .354 last season. He had 146 hits last year along with 61 RBI in 487 AB's. He maintained a slugging percentage of .435 with an OPS+ of 118. Willy Adames hit .278 last season and he had an OBP of .348. He collected 80 hits in 288 at bats while driving in 34 runs. He had an OPS+ of 109 and a slugging percentage of .406. The Rays as a unit had 1,415 base hits last season, including 274 doubles and 150 homers. Tampa Bay walked 540 times last year and they struck out on 1,388 occasions. They left 1,156 men on base and had an OPS of .740. They scored 4.42 runs per game and totaled 716 runs last year.

Who will win tonight's Astros/Rays MLB game against the spread?

Guy's Pick: Take the Rays +113

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