The battle for the American League pennant continues on Monday evening with Game 3 of the ALCS between the Houston Astros and the Boston Red Sox. Houston won Game 1 with late homers from Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa but Boston tied the series at 1-1 with a pair of grand slams in Game 2.
The Astros took out the White Sox in four games in the ALDS to punch their ticket to the ALCS. The Red Sox upset the Rays in four games to advance.
You can view the full postseason schedule by clicking here. With that throat-clearing out of the way, let’s get to the important stuff for Game 3.
How to watch
Date: Monday, Oct. 18 | Time: 8:08 p.m. ET
Location: Fenway Park (Boston, Mass.)
TV channel: FS1| Streaming: fuboTV (try for free)
Odds: O/U: 8.5 (via Caesars Sportsbook)
Starting pitchers: RHP José Urquidy (8-3, 3.63 ERA) vs. LHP Eduardo Rodríguez (13-8, 4.74 ERA)
Preview
Historically, teams who go up 2-1 in best-of-seven settings have gone on to win the series more than 70 percent of the time. That makes this a pivotal contest.
Urquidy appeared 20 times during the regular season, posting a 119 ERA+ and a 4.74 strikeout-to-walk ratio. This will mark just his second career start in the ALCS. He threw five innings of two-run ball last October versus the Rays in a losing effort.
Rodríguez accumulated an even 100 ERA+ and a 3.94 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 32 regular season outings. Despite being part of the Red Sox‘s pitching staff in 2018, this will be his first career start in the championship round.
Prediction
We’ll say the Red Sox will aggressively massage their pitching staff in a way that will allow them to notch an uneasy one-run victory.
Pick: Red Sox 6, Astros 5
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