<p>The Astros are cruising toward the playoffs while the Orioles are trying to stay close in the wild-card race, heading into the opener of a three-game series in Houston Friday night. Lance McCullers will make his third start of this season for the Astros here against rookie Kyle Bradish for Baltimore.</p>
<p>Which way are we going with our <b>free baseball betting pick</b>?</p>
<h2>MLB Betting Odds</h2>
<p>Friday's baseball betting lines opened Houston at around -210 over Baltimore, with an over/under of 8.5un -113 runs. Both figures were holding steady in the early betting action.</p>
<h2>Orioles-Astros MLB Betting Preview </h2>
<p>Baltimore just took two of three games at home from the White Sox, rallying very late to win Thursday's series rubber match 4-3 in 11 innings. Just before that, the Orioles took two of three from Boston, and just before that, they took two of three from Toronto. So Baltimore is 3-0 over its last three series and 6-4 over its last ten games.</p>
<p>At 65-59 overall, the Orioles probably won't catch the Yankees in the AL East race, but they also trail Seattle by only 2.5 games in the battle for the No. 3 spot in the AL wild-card standings.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, Houston swept three games from Minnesota by scores of 4-2, 5-3, and Thursday 6-3. Just before that, the Astros lost two of three at Atlanta, and just before that, they split four games at the White Sox. So Houston is 1-1-1 over its last three series and 6-4 over its last ten games.</p>
<p>At 81-45 overall, the Astros lead the AL West by 12.5 games over the second-place Mariners, and they're 3.5 games up on the Yankees in the battle for the best record in the American League.</p>
<p>This series is the first meeting between these teams this season. Last year these teams split six meetings.</p>
<h2>Friday's Pitching Match-Up </h2>
<p><a class="advblue" href="https://www.sportsbettingstats.com/mlb/pitcherlog/69254&quot; title="Lance McCullers Jr Pitching Game Stats">McCullers</a> is 1/2 on quality starts this season, which for him began a couple of weeks ago due to injury. Last Friday, he gave up three runs and seven hits through five innings of a 6-2 Houston loss to the Braves. Six days before that, in his season debut, he tossed six innings of two-hit, shutout ball in an 8-0 Astros win over Oakland.</p>
<p>So Houston is 1-1 with McCullers this season.</p>
<p>This will be McCullers' first start against Baltimore since 2017, and that's a long time ago.</p>
<p><a class="advblue" href="https://www.sportsbettingstats.com/mlb/pitcherlog/457094&quot; title="Kyle bradish Pitching Game Stats">Bradish</a> is 2/15 on quality starts this year, pitching on a short leash. Last Saturday, he gave up three runs and nine hits through 5 2/3 innings of a 4-3 Orioles loss to Boston. And over his last three starts, he's allowed nine runs and 20 hits through 15 2/3 innings.</p>
<p>Baltimore is 9-6 with Bradish this season, although that's probably two or three games better than they should be, based on his performances.</p>
<p>This will be Bradish's first career action against Houston.</p>
<h2>Splits With the Sticks</h2>
<p>Baltimore is batting .240 against right-handed pitching this season, with a .305 team OBP and a .396 team slugging percentage.</p>
<p>Houston is slashing .247/.321/.421 against right-handed pitching.</p>
<h2>The Bullpens </h2>
<p>The Astros bullpen owns an ML-best 3.01 ERA this season and a 1.19 WHIP.</p>
<p>The Orioles pen owns a 3.19 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP.<br />
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<span style="font-size:16px; color:#008000;">Get more details:</span> <a href="https://www.sportsbettingstats.com/mlb/matchup/1608241">Baltimore at Houston 8/26/22 Betting Stats</a>
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<h2>MLB Betting Trends </h2>
<p>The Orioles are 28-35 on the road this season and 40-42 against right-handed starters.</p>
<p>The Astros are 42-18 at home and 52-34 against right-handed starters.</p>
<h2>Totals Report</h2>
<ul>
<li>The Under is 62-56 in Orioles games this season.</li>
<li>The Under is 72-49 in Astros games.</li>
<li>The Under is 32-25 at Minute Maid Park this season.</li>
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