Major League Baseball fans are living the dream right now. In the middle of the postseason, we’ve seen some fantastic games go down, especially in the American League. Well, the pennant race is heating up, as Boston and Houston are ready to battle it out. In this article, we have MLB picks for the Astros vs. Red Sox ALCS showdown. Which team will be headed to the World Series?
As you might have been able to guess, Houston is favored to beat Boston and move on to the Fall Classic in this one. The Astros are coming off an impressive series in the ALDS going up against the Chicago White Sox, with the team really impressing both at the dish and on the bump. In the Game 4 win over Chicago, Lance McCullers was sound, tossing four innings and only giving up a solo homer to Gavin Sheets.
At the plate, guys like Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, Carlos Correa, Yuli Gurriel and others continue to impress. Right now, though, a big concern for the team is the status of starting center fielder Jake Meyers. Meyers tried robbing Sheets of his homer in Game 4, but he crashed against the wall and had to leave the game due to injury. At this time, it’s up in the air how much time he’ll miss if any. Below you’ll find odds from the top MLB betting sites.
| MLB odds |  |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Astros to win | -156 | -156 | -156 | -156 |
| Red Sox to win | +132 | +132 | +132 | +132 |
| Astros in 6 | +200 | +200 | +200 | +200 |
| Astros in 7 | +200 | +200 | +200 | +200 |
Meanwhile for Boston, the Red Sox continue to surprise plenty of folks. They’re headed to the ALCS the hard way. First, they took on the New York Yankees in the AL Wild Card Game, embarrassing Aaron Boone and the New York Yankees. They were underdogs going up against Tampa Bay, but they were able to record a 3-1 series win. This of course was great to see for skipper Alex Cora.
Heading into the ALCS, Houston is the favorite with their -156 MLB odds. Boston has been placed at +132. Clearly, the Las Vegas sportsbooks think that the Astros will be ready to do more than enough to get themselves back to the World Series. We agree, as we’re going with the Astros as our pick to win the ALCS.
A big-time question folks have on their minds is how many games could this series end up going? If you’re thinking a sweep is going to go down, let’s hold the phone on that. While the Astros should move on to the World Series, Cora’s men are going to do everything possible to make this an interesting series. We think that will be the case, with Boston stealing a couple of games.
Per the oddsmakers, things have been placed as the following in terms of games in the series: +600 for four games, +260 for five games, +200 for six games and +200 for seven games. Again, it would be an absolute shock if Houston were to record a sweep in this one. Boston is simply too good to not win at least a game in this series. For Boston, it will be on their starters to try and contain the Houston batters.
Meanwhile on offense, Rafael Devers will look to stay hot. Fortunately, J.D. Martinez is back after suffering his ankle injury in the last game of the regular season. That injury sidelined him from the AL Wild Card Game, but he’s back in the middle of the lineup and doing damage at the plate. Martinez is a true star slugger, and he’s going to be ready to try and light up the Houston hurlers.
With that said, the Astros are the favorites in this series and for good reason. Despite them being one of the most hated teams in all of sports due to their 2017 sign-stealing scandal, they continue to shut up their haters with outstanding play. They really looked unstoppable going up against the White Sox in the ALDS. Because of that, we think Houston will win this series 4-2. That’s right, we’re going with things to end after Game 6.
With the team playing so well, the Houston Astros have seen their World Series odds soar this postseason. Believe it or not, Dusty Baker’s squad now has the top number, as they hold +275 World Series odds. Behind them are the Giants at +310 and the Red Sox at +380. So, could Houston go on to not only win the ALCS, but win their second title since 2017? The club is feeling amazing right now after downing the White Sox.
“These guys, they love each other,” an emotional Baker said after the Game 4 win over Chicago at Guaranteed Rate Field on Tuesday. “And love can take you to heights you never thought you could get to. They feed off each other, and they pull for each other on a daily basis. One guy falls down and the next guy picks him up.”
While people are certainly rooting against the Astros this postseason because of their controversial past, they really feel like the top team to beat right now. They’re going to be tough to take down and we don’t think the Red Sox will get the job done. Can an NL team prevent them from lifting the trophy later this fall? It doesn’t seem likely. We’re going with the Astros to win it all.
