Blue Jays vs Astros Prediction, Picks, and Odds: Can Turner Lift Toronto?

The Toronto Blue Jays and Houston Astros finish off a three-game set at Minute Maid Park tonight as the hosts look for just their second win of this early season as slight MLB odds favorites.

Justin Turner continued his impressive start to his Blue Jays career last time out with three more hits and comes into Wednesday with a team-leading seven knocks in six games.

Find out how Turner features in my Blue Jays vs Rays MLB picks and predictions for Wednesday, April 3.

Blue Jays vs Astros odds

Blue Jays vs Astros predictions

It’s been a bit of a strange start to the season for both the Toronto Blue Jays and Houston Astros, and that trend has continued throughout this series, as the hosts took a 10-0 win in the opener but then fell 2-1 to the Jays on Wednesday.

Both clubs have been hit-or-miss at the plate so far (no pun intended) and will be sending solid starters to the mound in Chris Bassitt and Cristian Javier, so I think we’ll see another low-scoring contest tonight that finishes Under 8.5 runs.

Toronto has scored two runs or fewer in four of its six games so far, while only three players in its lineup are batting over .250 — Justin Turner (.350), Isiah Kiner-Falefa (.286), and Ernie Clement (.267).

Houston hasn’t been much better, as it’s scored three runs or fewer in four of six outings, while averaging 3.67 runs per game — tied for 22nd with Miami and Toronto.

Javier was stellar in his season debut for the Astros on March 29, pitching six scoreless innings against the Yankees, and I expect him to put up a similar performance against a Jays lineup that hasn’t been very consistent outside of Turner.

My best bet: Under 8.5 (+100 at PROLINE+)

Blue Jays star player prop

Justin Turner Over 0.5 RBI (+140)

While the Blue Jays managed just one run on Tuesday, Turner continued his strong play, as he recorded three of the team’s eight hits in the loss. The infielder has been a rare bright spot on this struggling Toronto offense with a team-leading seven hits in six games — five of which have been extra-base knocks.

Turner has hit slightly better against righties than lefties in his career, batting .292 vs right-handers compared to .278 vs southpaws, so he’ll match up well against Javier. If his teammates can help him out by getting into scoring position, we know Turner’s got the tools to bring ‘em home.

Justin Turner prop: Over 0.5 RBI (+140 at PROLINE+)

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Blue Jays vs Astros moneyline and Over/Under analysis

• The Astros opened as the home favorite at -140 and are fluctuating from around -135 to -150, depending on where you look. The Jays opened at +129 and have generally come down to around +120 at most books.
• Our total opened at 9 runs but has been pushed down to 8.5 almost uniformly across the board, which is unsurprising given the pitching matchup tonight as well as the struggles at the plate for both teams.
• The Under is 4-1 in Houston’s last five outings.

Blue Jays vs Astros betting preview

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The Under is 4-1 in the last five meetings. Find more MLB betting trends for Blue Jays vs. Astros

Blue Jays vs Astros game info

Starting pitchers

Chris Bassitt (0-1, 7.20 ERA): Bassitt’s season did not get off to a great start as he gave up a grand slam to the Rays in the third inning on March 29 before taking the loss in a five-inning outing. The right-hander posted a 3.60 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP over 33 starts for Toronto last season.

Cristian Javier (0-0, 0.00 ERA): Javier was lights out against the Yankees in his season debut on March 29, holding them to four hits and no runs over six innings while striking out six. After posting a career year in 2022, Javier fell back down to earth last season with a 4.56 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP in 31 appearances.

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