Minnesota Twins vs. Houston Astros Odds, Predictions, Starting Pitchers and Picks (June 2)

June 1, 2024; Houston, Texas, United States; Minnesota Twins third baseman Jose Miranda (64) talks with Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve (27) during a stoppage in play during the seventh inning at Minute Maid Park. Mandatory Credit: Erik Williams-USA TODAY Sports

• The Minnesota Twins visit the Houston Astros on Sunday afternoon in a three-game rubber match.
• Impressive rookie Simeon Woods Richardson gets the ball for the Twins against sophomore Hunter Brown for the Astros
• Below, check out the Twins vs. Astros odds, starting pitchers, predictions and picks.

The finale of a three-game set between the Minnesota Twins (32-26, 16-13 away) and the Houston Astros (26-33, 15-16 home) begins Sunday at 12:05 p.m. CT/1 :05. h ET.

After Minnesota dominated the opening game (6-1), Houston responded with a 5-2 victory on Saturday. Both teams are desperate to pile up wins. They were preseason favorites to win their divisions, but the Twins are seven points behind Cleveland in the AL Central while the Astros are 6.5 behind Seattle in the West.

Sunday’s Twins vs. Astros odds favor the home team, but the line is pretty tight.

Minnesota Twins vs. Houston Astros odds

The Astros are -135 moneyline favorites in Sunday’s MLB odds, with the Twins listed at +114. The over/under sits at 8.5 with the over slightly favored (-115o/-105u). Each of the first two games featured seven points and both fell short of their total.

The Astros, whose offense was less productive than expected, have been the best underbet in the league this year, going 21-35-3 O/U. Minnesota has also been trending downward, going 25-31-2 through its first 58 games of the season.

Odds as of June 2 at DraftKings Sportsbook. Check out the best MLB betting apps to bet on Sunday’s games.

Despite seven games under .500, the Astros (+750) are still listed with the third-best odds to reach the World Series in the AL Pennant odds. Minnesota fell to sixth at +1071, on average.

MIN vs. HOU starting pitchers

Minnesota rookie Simeon Woods Richardson makes his ninth start of the season Sunday, and the 23-year-old’s early returns have been solid. Woods Richardson hasn’t thrown too deep in many games (and is just 2-0 as a result), but he’s kept the vast majority of his opponents in check, sporting an ERA so far of 2.70 and a WHIP of 1.10, although his strikeout percentage is only 18.4%.

This will be Wood Richardson’s first career start against the Astros and no one in Houston’s lineup has ever faced him before.

In his last start, he went 5.0 innings in a 4–2 win over Kansas City, allowing two runs on three hits and two walks with four strikeouts.

Simeon Woods Richardson vs. Hunter Brown

In his second full season with the ‘Stros, Hunter Brown was (once again) the weak link in Houston’s starting rotation. The 25-year-old right-hander has a 6.39 ERA and 1.64 WHIP in 11 starts this year, although he is trending upward. Brown had a 9.34 ERA at the end of April, but he allowed just 10 runs in 26.2 innings in five starts in May, holding opponents to two runs or less in four of those five. departures.

Brown’s most recent start was his best of the year, pitching six innings with four hits, no walks and just one run in a 4-2 loss at Seattle.

He faced the Twins four times last year (two regular season starts and two postseason relief appearances) and the results were mixed. Minnesota’s 2024 roster is hitting .297 against Brown, but with a below-average OPS. In a total of 37 at-bats, they had 11 hits and two walks, but those 11 hits were singles.

Minnesota Twins vs Houston Astros Prediction

Houston is playing better than early in the season, when the Astros went 6-14 through their first 20 games, but they haven’t looked like the World Series contender they expected and have for almost a decade. Alex Bregman took a big step back, slashing .224/.283/.379, while former AL MVP Jose Abreu was unplayable (.119/.167/.167). Kyle Tucker carried the offense with a .976 OPS and 19 home runs (which are behind Aaron Judge’s 20).

Overall, I expect Woods Richardson to continue his early streak of success. But I’m also expecting an effective start from Brown, who – as mentioned – pitched much better last month compared to his disastrous April. Fangraphs projects the talented 25-year-old to drop his ERA to 4.02 by the end of the season and, even now, his xERA through 11 starts is just 4.04, indicating he doesn’t ‘didn’t have any luck.

MIN vs HOU choice:

• NRFI (-115)
• Twins moneyline (+114)

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