Minute Maid Park hosts an MLB battle between the Houston Astros and the visiting Washington Nationals on Wednesday.

Gio Gonzalez gets the ball in front of a hostile crowd for the Nationals on this day; he's 13-6 on the season. The Astros, meanwhile, will counter with Armando Galarraga, who will be looking to improve on his 0-1 mark.



View Washington vs Houston Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
If you're backing the visitors in this one, you'll find the Nationals listed as favorites of 190 at most sportsbooks. Total bettors saw the number open in the area of 8.5, depending on the book.

Power Rankings:
This game matches up the No. 16 (Astros) and the No. 2 (Nationals) teams in their respective leagues, according to our current MLB Power Rankings.



How They Match Up:
On offense, it's a battle between Houston and its National League No. 13-rated batting order, averaging 3.8 runs per nine innings, against the National League's No. 7 lineup of the Nationals at 4.3 runs per outing.

Washington brings the National League's No. 1-rated defense to this matchup, facing the Astros' league No. 15-ranked defense.

Washington won its last outing, a 3-2 result against the Astros on August 7. Bettors who backed the Nationals at -175 on the moneyline won on the day, and the total score (5) sent UNDER bettors to the payout window. Washington needed extra innings to get the job done against the Astros on Tuesday as the Nationals defeated them 3-2 at Minute Maid Park.




Washington Nationals Trends:
When playing on Wednesday are 2-8
Before playing Houston are 6-4
After playing Houston are 7-3
After a win are 7-3

Houston Astros Trends:
When playing on Wednesday are 6-4
Before playing Washington are 2-8
After playing Washington are 4-6
After a loss are 2-8

A few Nationals at Astros trends to consider:
Washington is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games on the road
Washington is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
Washington is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing Houston
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Houston's last 5 games
Houston is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games when playing Washington
Houston is 1-9 SU in its last 10 games at home
Houston is 2-19 SU in its last 21 games


Next up:
Washington at Houston, Thursday, August 9