The Houston Astros (37-42) open a three-game set in Toronto (38-39) tonight. The Astros took two of three over the weekend against Cleveland and have now won four of their last five to pull within three games of first in the American League West and within two of the final Wild Card spot. Toronto was rained out yesterday in Chicago after splitting the first two games of that series. The Jays have now won four of their last five games and sit 8.5 games in back of the Yankees in the AL East but in that aforementioned third and final Wild Card spot.
Toronto has been solid at home (21–18), while Houston has struggled on the road at 17–21.
The pitching matchup tonight features a pair of staff aces as Hunter Brown takes the ball for the ‘Stros against Dylan Cease of the Jays. Brown will be making his second start for Houston since returning from the disabled list. He is 1–0 with a sparkling 1.10 ERA with 24 strikeouts across just over 16 innings. The Blue Jays were expected to counter with right-hander Shane Bieber, but due to yesterday’s postponement, Bieber has been pushed back a day and Cease will start. This will be Cease’s 14th start of the season. He is 4-3 with a 2.71 ERA and 110 strikeouts (third in MLB).
Houston’s offense centers around their Triple Crown candidate, Yordan Alvarez. The designated hitter ranks fourth in the game with a .322 average, second with 25 home runs, and fifth in baseball with 56 RBIs. Ernie Clement struggled over the weekend but leads the Jays with a .292 average. Kyle Okamoto strikes out about once every three at bats but does damage when he makes contact with a team-leading 16 home runs.
Lets dive into tonight’s matchup and find a sweat or two.
Toronto has been solid at home (21–18), while Houston has struggled on the road at 17–21.
The pitching matchup tonight features a pair of staff aces as Hunter Brown takes the ball for the ‘Stros against Dylan Cease of the Jays. Brown will be making his second start for Houston since returning from the disabled list. He is 1–0 with a sparkling 1.10 ERA with 24 strikeouts across just over 16 innings. The Blue Jays were expected to counter with right-hander Shane Bieber, but due to yesterday’s postponement, Bieber has been pushed back a day and Cease will start. This will be Cease’s 14th start of the season. He is 4-3 with a 2.71 ERA and 110 strikeouts (third in MLB).
Houston’s offense centers around their Triple Crown candidate, Yordan Alvarez. The designated hitter ranks fourth in the game with a .322 average, second with 25 home runs, and fifth in baseball with 56 RBIs. Ernie Clement struggled over the weekend but leads the Jays with a .292 average. Kyle Okamoto strikes out about once every three at bats but does damage when he makes contact with a team-leading 16 home runs.
Lets dive into tonight’s matchup and find a sweat or two.
3 months ago
