The Houston Astros will look to bolster their win total and reward moneyline bettors when the Pittsburgh Pirates invade Minute Maid Park on Tuesday.

Houston sends Henry Sosa out against Charlie Morton for the Pirates in this game. Sosa is 1-2 with a 5.09 ERA on the season, while Morton is 9-7 on the year and has a 3.63 ERA.



View Pittsburgh vs Houston Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
The Pirates were listed as 115 favorites on the baseball moneyline at many online sportsbooks. The total was set at 8 before betting started earlier on Monday.

Power Rankings:
The MLB Power Rankings at Odds Shark show the National League's No. 16-rated Pirates taking on the National League's No. 13-rated Astros in this contest.



How They Match Up:
Rating these teams in several key categories is important for handicappers and Houston has the National League's No. 13-rated offensive output, at 9 hits per game. The Pirates average 8.2 hits per game, good for No. 13 on the National League list.

Houston owns the National League's No. 16 defense, allowing 5 men per game to cross the plate. That contrasts with Pittsburgh's National League No. 9-rated defense.

In their last action, Pittsburgh was a 7-4 loser on the road against the Astros. Bettors on Houston at -127 on the moneyline collected their winnings from that game, while the total score (11) sent OVER bettors home happy as well. Pittsburgh looks to rebound from a loss to the Astros, who beat them 7-4 on Monday behind a start from Wandy Rodriguez at Minute Maid Park.




Pittsburgh Pirates Trends:
When playing on Tuesday are 2-8
Before playing Houston are 8-2
After playing Houston are 7-3
After a loss are 5-5

Houston Astros Trends:
When playing on Tuesday are 7-3
Before playing Pittsburgh are 3-7
After playing Pittsburgh are 3-7
After a win are 4-6

A few Pirates at Astros trends to consider:
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Pittsburgh's last 6 games when playing on the road against Houston
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Pittsburgh's last 5 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Pittsburgh's last 5 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Pittsburgh's last 5 games when playing Houston
Houston is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Houston's last 6 games when playing at home against Pittsburgh
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Houston's last 5 games when playing Pittsburgh
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Houston's last 11 games at home


Next up:
Pittsburgh at Houston, Wednesday, August 31