Astros vs Dodgers Predictions, Picks, Odds: L.A. Hops Out to Early Lead in Cali

Astros vs Dodgers Predictions, Picks, Odds: L.A. Hops Out to Early Lead in Cali Pleas Subscribe For Daily Sports Betting NewsShow more

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Two of the best teams in the majors face off on Saturday with the Los Angeles Dodgers hosting the Houston Astros. The defending World Series champion Astros have the fourth-best odds to win it all again at +850 while the Dodgers are just ahead of them on the World Series odds at +650.
Both sides are sending a rookie pitcher to the mound today and with L.A.'s Bobby Miller having the far better track record, MLB odds opened with L.A. as -175 a home favorite. Here are my free Astros vs. Dodgers MLB picks for June 24.
Astros vs Dodgers...

Two of the best teams in the majors face off on Saturday with the Los Angeles Dodgers hosting the Houston Astros. The defending World Series champion Astros have the fourth-best odds to win it all again at +850 while the Dodgers are just ahead of them on the World Series odds at +650.
Both sides are sending a rookie pitcher to the mound today and with L.A.'s Bobby Miller having the far better track record, MLB odds opened with L.A. as -175 a home favorite. Here are my free Astros vs. Dodgers MLB picks for June 24.
Astros vs Dodgers odds Astros vs Dodgers predictions
The Houston Astros have consistently been one of the best offensive teams in the majors over the last several years, but they've struggled at the dish this season. They are 19th in OPS (.714), 24th in barrel rate (7.3%), and 23rd in hard-hit rate (38.7%). Those struggling bats could be even worse over the next few weeks with their best slugger Yordan Alvarez sidelined by an oblique injury. 
The Los Angeles Dodgers are missing one of their top sluggers as well with Max Muncy out until early July. However, they have a deeper lineup with even more productive batters such as Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts, and J.D. Martinez, who all hit for power like Muncy but also make better contact than the third baseman. 
The Dodgers are tied for fourth in the majors in OPS (.768) while ranking second in barrel rate (10.2%), and third in hard-hit rate (42.7%). Bobby Miller was called up by the Dodgers a month ago and looked incredible in his first four starts, pitching to a 0.78 ERA with 0.83 WHIP. He came crashing down to earth in his previous outing last Saturday when he was shelled for seven runs in 5 2/3 innings against the Giants. 
There might be some questions about whether that performance against San Fran meant teams have figured him out or if it was just an outlier. I'm leaning toward the latter. After all, it's pretty tough to figure out a guy that throws a two-seamer at 98.6 mph and averages 99.4 mph on his four-seamer... while also boasting a plus slider and changeup that opposing batters have a whiff rate of more than 36% against. 
The Astros are sending another rookie Ronel Blanco to the mound but the 29-year-old doesn't have anywhere near the stuff or the production of Miller. In three career starts (all this month) he has pitched to a 4.76 ERA with a .266 OBA.
Not only does Blanco have one of the worst barrel rates in the majors, he also has terrible control with nine walks in 17 innings across those three starts. In fact, even though he allowed just five hits in 16 innings at Triple A Sugarland last month, he walked 13 batters. That's bad news against a stacked L.A. lineup that ranks second in the majors in walk rate. 
With the Dodgers boasting the better lineup and the superior starter at home, it makes sense that they're big favorites in this one. That said, their bullpen has been tough to trust with their relievers ranked 27th in the majors in ERA (4.83) and that number has soared to 5.67 this month.
I'd prefer to avoid that vulnerable bullpen and grab Los Angeles on the run line through the first five innings.  My best bet: Dodgers first five innings -0.5 (-140 at PointsBet) Astros vs Dodgers same-game parlay Dodgers F5 -0.5 Freeman 2+ TB Martinez Over 0.5 RBI If you saw a common theme in the above breakdown it was probably "fade Blanco" and that's exactly what I'm looking to do...