<p>AL West-leading Houston is trying to play itself out of a stretch of doldrums, heading into the opener of a two-game interleague series with the Rockies in Denver. But the Astros are picking a strange place to give a rookie his first Major League start. Who do we like here for our free MLB pick?</p>
<h2>
MLB Betting Odds<br />
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<p>
Tuesday's MLB betting odds opened Colorado at around -115 over Houston, with an over/under of 12.5 runs. Early betting action then bumped that total to 13, which is almost standard for a Rockies home game these days.
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<h2>
Astros vs. Rockies Set-Up<br />
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<p>
Houston just swept three games from Seattle over the weekend, winning Sunday's series finale 6-1. The Astros then had Monday off.
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<p>
Just before that Houston lost two of three games to Pittsburgh; just before that the Astros lost three of four to the Yankees; and just before that they got swept three games by Cincinnati. So even with the sweep of its own over the weekend, Houston is just 5-9 over its last 14 games.
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<p>
At 53-32 overall the Astros' lead in the AL West now sits at 6.5 games over second-place Texas. Houston also trails the Yankees by 2.5 games in the battle for the best record in the American League.
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Colorado, meanwhile, just split four games with the Dodgers over the weekend, losing Sunday's series finale 10-5. The Rockies then also had Monday off.
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<p>
Just before that Colorado took two of three games from San Francisco. So the Rockies are 4-3 over their last seven games.
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<p>
At 44-40 overall Colorado trails first-place Los Angeles by 12 games in the NL West, but it's also tied with Philadelphia for second place in the NL wild-card standings.
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This series is the first meeting between these teams this season. Last year these teams split four games.
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<h2>
Tuesday's Starting Arms<br />
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<p>
Marquez, by our stringent standards, is 7/18 on quality starts this season and just one for his last five. Last Wednesday he gave up three runs – two earned – and seven hits through five innings of a 6-3 Rockies win over the Giants. But over his last five starts, he's allowed 22 ER and 34 hits through 30 innings.
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<p>
Colorado is 13-5 with Marquez this season, and thanks to some solid run support 3-1 over his last four starts.
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<p>
In his only career start against Houston, in August of last season, Marquez allowed just one run and three hits through seven innings of a 5-1 Rockies victory.
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<p>
Urquidy is making his ML debut Tuesday night, in a tough park to pitch in. The 24-year-old righty earned his call to the Bigs by going 15-11 with a 3.00 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP in parts of four seasons in the Minors, including a 3-1/2.89/0.97 stint down at Triple-A Round Rock this year, with 64 strikeouts through 43 2/3 innings of work.
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<p>
This being Urquidy's first-ever appearance against the Rockies could give him an edge, at least for the first couple of times through the lineup.
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<h2>
Tuesday's Batting Splits<br />
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<p>
Houston is batting .262/.333/.454 against right-handed pitching this season.
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<p>
Colorado is batting .266/.325/.454 against RH pitching this season.
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<h2>
The Bullpens<br />
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<p>
The Astros bullpen owns a 3.80 ERA this season and a 1.18 WHIP while allowing a .682 OPS. Numbers like those help this unit rank among the top five bullpens in Baseball at the moment.
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The Rockies pen owns a 4.70 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP while allowing a .758 OPS.
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<h2>
Totals Report<br />
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<ul>
<li>
Unders are 45-36 in Astros games this season.
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<li>
Overs are 44-36 in Rockies games this season.
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<li>
Overs are 26-15 in games played at Coors Field this season, even as Rockies home games are regularly tagged with totals of 11, 12 and more.
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<li>
Unders played 2-1-1 in Astros-Rockies games this season.
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<li>
Overs are 9-8 with Marquez this season.
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<p><section></p>
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<span style="font-size:16px;"><b><span style="color:#008000;">Get more details:</span></b> <a class="advblue" href="https://www.sportsbettingstats.com/mlb/matchup/1079653">Astros at Rockies MLB Match-up Stats</a> </span>
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