The Pittsburgh Pirates host Houston on Friday, looking to build on their 14-17 mark against the 14-17 Astros in MLB betting action at PNC Park.

James McDonald will take the mound for Pittsburgh, and he'll carry a 2-1 record into the contest. Bud Norris gets the ball for Houston; he's 2-1 so far this season.



View Houston vs Pittsburgh Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
Pittsburgh opened as -140 moneyline favorites in this baseball match, based on the starting pitcher matchup. That pairing made odds makers settle on an Sportsbook over under number of 7.5.

Power Rankings:
The Pirates sit at No. 14 in the National League in the current MLB power poll here at Odds Shark, while the Astros sit at a National League No. 3 on the same chart.



How They Match Up:
Rating these teams in several key categories is important for handicappers and Pittsburgh has the National League's No. 16-rated offensive output, at 7.3 hits per game. The Astros average 8.8 hits per game, good for No. 7 on the National League list.

Pittsburgh owns the National League's No. 6 defense, allowing 3.7 men per game to cross the plate. That contrasts with Houston's National League No. 11-rated defense.

Last time out for Houston, they were a 5-3 loser as they battled the Marlins at home. Moneyline bettors who got the Marlins at -145 were rewarded, while the 8 combined runs moved the game UNDER for totals bettors. Houston lost a tight one on Wednesday, seeing the game get away from them in extra innings and falling by a 5-3 score against Miami at Minute Maid Park.

The Pirates were a 4-2 loser in their most recent outing at home against the Nationals. That made Sportsbooks of bettors who got Washington at -157 on the moneyline, while the total score (6) was good news for UNDER bettors. Pittsburgh suffered a 4-2 loss against Washington on Thursday, as Kevin Correia wasn't able to lead his team to victory at PNC Park.


Houston Astros Trends:
When playing on Friday are 1-9
Before playing Pittsburgh are 5-5
After playing Miami are 2-8
After a loss are 5-5

Pittsburgh Pirates Trends:
When playing on Friday are 1-9
Before playing Houston are 4-6
After playing Washington are 6-4
After a loss are 9-1

A few Astros at Pirates trends to consider:
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Houston's last 7 games on the road
Houston is 6-3 SU in its last 9 games
Houston is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing Pittsburgh
Houston is 4-11 SU in its last 15 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 15 of Pittsburgh's last 19 games at home
Pittsburgh is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games when playing at home against Houston
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Pittsburgh's last 6 games
Pittsburgh is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing Houston


Next up:
Houston at Pittsburgh, Saturday, May 12