The Astros have shockingly dropped both games at Minute Maid Park in the American League Championship Series, and all of a sudden, the defending world champions find themselves just one loss away from playoff elimination.
Lucky for them, their ace is set to take the mound on Thursday night.
Justin Verlander will be looking to play the role of stopper, attempting to right the ship and get the Astros off the schneid. He’ll also try to eat up as many innings as possible, as the Astros bullpen is taxed, with Charlie Morton having lasted only 2 1/3 innings in Wednesday’s 8-6 loss. The Astros used six pitchers in the game, with four of them giving up at least one run. They’ll need seven innings of quality work from Verlander, and he’s certainly capable of that, JV held the Red Sox to only two earned runs in six innings of work in Game 1 at Fenway Park, and we expect more of the same on Thursday.
On the other side of the coin, David Price hasn’t had a quality start in over a month. He’s given up 14 earned runs in his last four outings — spread out over 16 2/3 innings. Price was defeated by Verlander in Game 1, and we believe the home crowd will do whatever they can to get in Price’s head, as he’s struggled immensely under pressure in the past.
It’s hard to see Price outpitching Verlander, and is even more difficult to fathom the Astros losing three consecutive games at home in the series.
Red Sox-Astros ALCS Game 5 Highlights and Fixture Information
Date: Thursday, October 18
Time: 8:09 p.m. EST/1:09 a.m. BST (Friday, Oct. 19)
Live Stream to Watch Online: fuboTV
TV Info: FOX Sports 1 (U.S.), BT Sport 1 (U.K.)
Where to bet legally on Red Sox-Astros in USA: Check out us-bookies.com for all the wagering advice you need. They’ve got you covered for everything heading into this pivotal matchup.
Prediction: Astros 4, Red Sox 2
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