It’s been over two decades since the Seattle Mariners made it to the playoffs, and they’re also off to a promising start in their return to the postseason. Now comes a familiar foe in the Houston Astros, who finished atop the American League standings this season as they look to return to the World Series stage for the third time in six years. Can the Astros keep their strong run of postseason performances going, or will they fall to their rising division rivals?

Nitrobetting is ready to lend a hand to its bettors with their winning bets to be shot out of the park. This time, let’s take a closer look at the upcoming American League Divisional Series showdown between the Seattle Mariners and the Houston Astros.

2022 ALDS Series Preview: Mariners vs. Astros

READ MORE: Guardians vs. Yankees 2022 ALDS Series Odds and Preview

What to Know About the Seattle Mariners

• Odds to Win 2022 ALDS Series: +200

The last time the Seattle Mariners found themselves in the postseason, they had a historic 116-win campaign and reached the American League Championship Series. That was way back in 2001, though, yet the new era of M’s baseball is already off to an auspicious start by way of a 2-0 AL Wild Card Series sweep of the Toronto Blue Jays.

Both of Seattle’s games against the Jays were memorable, to say the least. Game 1 featured a 4-0 shutout victory as ace starting pitcher Luis Castillo pitched 7.1 innings of no-run ball and with season savior Cal Raleigh hitting a two-run homer in the very first inning. Game 2, meanwhile, saw the Mariners claw out of a seven-run deficit and steal a 10-9 victory in Toronto to secure their date against the Astros.

From Raleigh to sensational rookie Julio Rodriguez and veteran standout Eugenio Suarez, Seattle has enough firepower in the batting order to contest Houston’s own heavy hitters. The real concern is with the starting rotation, though, as Castillo won’t be ready to start until the middle portion of the ADLS after his outing in the Wild Card round. Robbie Ray has also been shaky at times, which means the likes of George Kirby and Logan Gilbert must be ready for the biggest games of their respective careers.

What to Know About the Houston Astros

• Odds to Win 2022 ALDS Series: -222

For the fourth time in six years, the Houston Astros finished with a 100-win campaign and are heavy favorites to win the World Series. As tainted as their title-winning run in 2017 was, there’s still no denying that the Astros have one of the most talented rosters in all baseball and their sustained postseason success can only be rivaled by another powerhouse in the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Much of Houston’s core from that 2017 team is still intact and doing a ton of damage on the diamonds, namely former AL MVP Jose Altuve, two-time All-Star Alex Bregman, and perennial AL Cy Young candidate Justin Verlander. Then there’s the added bonus of rising superstar Yordan Alvarez, who took home ALCS MVP honors last season and is in the running for the AL regular-season MVP award as we speak.

Houston fared relatively well against its AL West rival Seattle this regular season, giving the team another edge outside pure talent from top to bottom. Not to mention the wealth of playoff experience under the Astros’ belt compared to the relative newcomers to October baseball, and it’s hard to suggest that the MLB’s modern-day villains are in for a stunning upset at the hands of the Mariners that easily.

Mariners vs. Astros Betting Trends

• The Mariners are 4-2 in their last six road games.
• The M’s are on a five-game win streak and won nine of their last 11 in general.
• The totals have gone over in four of Seattle’s last five wins.
• The Astros are 4-1 in their last five home games.
• The Astros went 12-7 against the Mariners this season, with wins in five of their last six meetings.
• The totals have gone under in four of Houston’s last five homestands.

Mariners vs. Astros 2022 ALDS Series Expert Betting Predictions

As much as the majority of the baseball fandom is on the Mariners’ side, there’s just too much talent in Houston that Seattle’s Cinderella run will likely come to a bitter end. Although, we also expect the M’s to put up a decent fight against their divisional nemesis that it wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility that they steal one of the first two games of the series in Minute Maid Park.

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