San Diego Padres vs Houston Astros Prediction & Picks - MLB

Prediction published on 9/18/24, 3:29 PM  by Carlos Zabala in MLB Picks

Astros and Padres tie the series at one game apiece.

For Game 3, the Astros are scheduled to get Valdez, who has been particularly sharp recently. The Astros have won 4 of Valdez's last 5 starts and have always been favored. Also, in that span Valdez has an ERA as low as 1.06 and has not allowed a single HR in any of those starts.

For the Padres, Cease is the starter for the Padres, coming off a great last outing where he struck out 10 and earned his 13th W of the year. With the White Sox, Cease faced the Astros twice last season and in both cases he pitched 6 innings or more and allowed just 1 ER. However, his overall record against the Astros is 0-3 and he has a 4.18 ERA against them.

The Padres still have the lead over the Diamondbacks and hold the first NL Wild Card. But by losing yesterday they lost a good opportunity to get closer to the Dodgers, who lost to the Marlins, and who hold a 3.5 game lead over them.

In Tuesday's game Machado hit his 27th HR. For the Astros, Tucker continues to find his competitive rhythm after returning from his injury and drove in the winning run in the 10th inning.