Mets vs Astros Odds: Houston Should Pick up the Win in Game One of the Series

• The Mets and Astros will meet for the first time on Monday 
• The Mets are five games under .500 with a 33-38 record
• The Astros are six games above .500 with a 39-33 record

The Houston Astros and New York Mets square off on Monday in the first of a three-game series from Minute Maid Park. The Astros will look for their eighth consecutive win against the Mets. Last season, Houston swept the Mets in four total games over the season. At this point in the year, it’s safe to call the Mets a disappointment. For New York to have any signs of life, they must play well against a quality Houston team in this series. The first pitch from Houston is scheduled for 8:10 p.m. ET and it will be streamed nationally on ESPN+. 

Mets vs Astros Odds

Odds via FanDuel Sportsbook

Mets vs Astros Picks

New York will enter this game with a 4-11 record in the month of June. The Mets are coming off of a tightly contested 8-7 loss to the Cardinals. Max Scherzer will be stepping onto the mound to

Start Monday’s contest, and he has been very shaky in 2023.. Scherzer is fresh off of a brutal game against the Yankees where he gave up six earned runs and got replaced inside of the third inning. For the Mets to succeed, they will need to receive better production from their ace. 

Houston could have definitely played better over the first half of the month. They only accumulated eight wins thus far in June, but most of their losses came by less than a two-run margin. The Astros will look to 24 year old Hunter Brown to pitch them to a win on Monday. The young pitcher is riding high after arguably one of his best performances of his career against the Nationals. If Brown can pitch this way, Houston should pick up the win in game one of the series. 

Max Scherzer and the Mets have turned in the wrong direction as of late. Yet, the playoffs are still in reach for New York, but they must start winning games. There is still a lot of baseball to play in 2023, but if the New York pitchers don’t step up, they will continue to place at the bottom of their division. We are taking with the Astros in this one based off the simple fact that their pitchers have been better and their bats have been consistent. We expect this game to be close but the Astros should be able to grind out a win.

OUR PICK: Astros ML (-130)

Mets vs Astros Predictions

With Max Scherzer on the mound for the Mets, he will look to improve from his last two starts which haven’t been very pretty. Scherzer’s season stats are not that bad with a 5-3 record, 4.45 ERA, and 60 strikeouts in 52.2 innings. However, in the last two starts for Scherzer, he managed to give up 18 hits and 11 runs in just nine combined innings.

Hunter Brown has continued to impress as he has put together a 6-3 record, a 3.35 ERA, and 83 strikeouts in 75.1 innings. Brown’s last start was definitely something to brag about as he managed to shut down the Nationals. The young right handed pitcher has only given up seven hits in his last 13 innings on the hill. 

This should be a highly contested game, but we expect the Astros to be able to get to Scherzer

as he has struggled in the past against the club. We also expect Hunter Brown to keep the

pressure on, deliver an impressive performance, and add another win to his 2023 record. The Mets have been horrendous this month and a tough matchup like this one will make it tough to break out of their down hill spiral. 

New York Mets Preview

The Mets are currently in fourth place in the NL East. While they are 12.5 games back from the first place Braves, they aren’t out of this fight yet. However, New York will need to turn on the jets and get some momentum to have a chance of closing the gap with them and Atlanta. 

New York has the arm talent to produce wins, but they just haven't been able to do so thus far. With Scherzer, Kodai Senga, and Justin Verlander, there never have been past issues with those guys on the bump. The same goes for the offensive players like Pete Alonso and Brandon Nimmo, who have put the team on their back throughout the season. More players must rally around the stars to start winning games in New York. 

Houston Astros Preview

Houston is currently holding on to third in the AL West and is continuing to show small signs that they’re the defending World Series champions. Right now they stand 1.5 games

back from the Angels and 4.5 games behind the Rangers for first place in the AL West.

As of the last seven days, Houston’s batters are only hitting .209, so they must turn this slump around. Cristian Javier, Hunter Brown, and Framber Valdez have been successful in leading the charge on the mound for the Astros. They have the tools to make a second consecutive run at the championship, but they must improve their consistency. 

Mets vs Astros How to Watch

• Location: Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas
• Game Time & Date: JUNE 19th @ 8:10p.m. ET
• Streaming: MLB.TV and ESPN+