Fade the faltering Yankees in series opener against Astros on Thursday

The Houston Astros have made moves at the MLB trade deadline and are gearing up for another run at the World Series.

At the beginning of the year, an Astros vs. Yankees series would be a highly anticipated showdown in what could have been an ALCS preview. Now, this series seems to be one-sided as the Yankees have become a dumpster fire that can't be put out.

Let's dive into the odds for tonight's series opener and then I'll give you my best bet.

Astros vs. Yankees odds, run line, and total

Astros vs. Yankees prediction and pick

The Yankees' recent losses haven't been just due to bad luck. Their offense has been abysmal over the past month. In fact, over the last 30 days the Yankees rank 25th in the Majors in OPS at .683. They're also 26th in batting average at .226.

Meanwhile, the Astros rank 10th in 11th in those two categories respectively. The two teams aren't even in the same stratosphere when it comes to offensive production since the start of July.

I'll be honest, Cristian Javier has not been good lately, but now that he gets to face a faltering offense like the Yankees, now is as good a time as any for him to start to bounce back. Clarke Schmidt also hasn't had his best stuff in July, sporting a 4.43 ERA this month.

There's few teams the Yankees should be favored against right now, let alone the AL favorite Houston Astros. I'll gladly back the 'Stros as small underdogs in the Bronx tonight.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change