Houston Astros at Cleveland Guardians 8/5/22 - MLB Picks & Predictions

The Houston Astros play the second game of a four-game series on the road Friday against the Cleveland Guardians. Houston is 68-38 following its 6-1 victory over the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday. The victory snapped a short two-game losing streak for Houston. The Astros are first in the American League West, 11 games ahead of the second place Seattle Mariners.

Designated hitter Yordan Alvarez is batting .303 with 30 home runs, 72 RBIs and an on-base percentage of .409 to lead Houston and each category. Second baseman Jose Altuve is the leader in hits with 95. On Friday, the Houston Astros will send Framber Valdez to the mound. The left-hander is 9-5 with a 2.80 ERA, 117 Ks and 45 BBs.

Cleveland is 54-50 following its 7-4 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday. Amed Rosario hit a three-run homer that carried 450 feet and Oscar Gonzalez also went yard. Cleveland has won three out of the last four and the Guardians are second in the American League Central, just one game behind the first-place Minnesota Twins right.

Andres Gimenez is batting .301 to lead Cleveland, while Amed Rosario is the leader of hits with 118. Third baseman Jose Ramirez is the leader in home runs with 21 and RBIs with 86 while Steven Kwan is the leader in on-base percentage at .370. Cleveland has not announced its starting pitcher for Friday's second game of a four-game series against Houston.