Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
Houston Astros Look for Seventh Straight Series Win As They Play Angels
The Houston Astros have been on a path of dominance throughout the first half of the season, as they look to extend their seven-series win streak as they take on the Los Angeles Angels.
The two sides come into the three-game series on different paths. The Astros enter off of a 2-1 series win against the Oakland Athletics.
Yuli Gurriel slugs a single in the ninth innings against the Oakland Athletics.
Neville E. Guard-USA TODAY Sports
It was a set of games in which some of the underperformers this season came out big for Houston. One of those underperformers is Yuli Gurriel, who is hitting below his career batting average of .287. Despite his struggles throughout the season, Gurriel pulled through in the series, slashing .385/.385/.462.
Rookie catcher Korey Lee made his fourth major league appearance Sunday where he snagged three hits and three RBI.
Besides Lee's three-hit outing, Sunday also included several Astros players getting named to the American League All-Star team. The list includes Yordan Álvarez, Kyle Tucker, Justin Verlander, José Altuve and Framber Valdez.
On the other side of the ticket sits the Angels, who are coming off a sweep by the Baltimore Orioles — winners of eight-straight games.
The sweep came for a few different reasons, with the main reason being the Angels' offense not being able to get started. Throughout the series, several players struggled to hit over .220, with franchise super-star Mike Trout only hitting .250/.294/.438 with one home run and three RBI.
So far this season, the Angels' lack of offense is an issue that exists against the Astros, as they only hit .199/.276/.316 against the side. Finding their rhythm early will instantly improve their chances of taking a game from Houston.
Let's take a look at the pitching match-ups for this series:
Game One:
Astros Pitcher: Luis García (7-5, 3.81 ERA)
Angels Pitcher: Noah Syndergaard (5-7, 3.84)
Luis García's last trip to the mound was against the Kansas City Royals in which he pitched 6 1/3 innings while giving up eight hits and five runs while fanning out seven batters. García got his first win of the season against the Angels in April when allowing four hits and three runs while striking out seven batters.
Noah Syndergaard's debut season with the Angels couldn't have gotten off to a better start. In his first start with the Angels, Syndergaard held the Astros to two hits and two walks over 5 1/3 innings, picking up the win following the Angels' 2-0 victory.
Since then, Syndergaard's debut campaign has gone awry pitching with an ERA of 3.84 and a FIP of 3.83, which isn't horrible but it isn't doing him well by any means. In his last start out against the Miami Marlins, Syndergaard allowed five hits while fanning eight batters over five innings.
First Pitch: Tuesday, 8:38 p.m. CT
Where to Watch: KBME 790 AM/ ATT SportsNet-SW
Game Two:
Astros Pitcher: Cristian Javier (6-4, 3.01 ERA)
Angels Pitcher: Shohei Ohtani (8-4, 2.44 ERA)
Cristian Javier's previous start was one to forget especially after his two starts of double-digit strikeouts. Against the Royals, Javier allowed four hits and five runs across five innings, his shortest outing since mid-June.
The 2022 season has been just another year for Shohei Ohtani as he places in the top 95 percent for several categories in the league. Ohtani's previous outing against the Marlins only further provided his dominance as he pitched seven innings of two-hit ball while fanning 10 batters. This would be his third consecutive start of double-digit strikeouts.
Ohtani was handed his first loss of the season by the Astros way back in early April, despite Ohtani's nine strikeouts.
First Pitch: Wednesday, 8:38 p.m. CT
Where to Watch: KBME 790 AM/ ATT SportsNet-SW
Game Three:
Astros Pitcher: Framber Valdez (8-4, 2.64 ERA)
Angels Pitcher: TBD
One of Houston's players named to the American League All-Star team was Valdez, which should come to fans as no surprise due to his sheer dominance over the course of the season.
Valdez averages eight strikeouts per game while only allowing an average of six hits per game. However, in his previous outing, Valdez did land beneath both metrics, allowing four hits and striking out three batters over eight innings on the rubber.
Although the Angels have yet to announce who will be taking the mound on Thursday, according to their rotation, Chase Silseth may get the start. In his previous outing, Silseth only went four innings in which he allowed six hits and four runs with two strikeouts.
First Pitch: Thursday, 7:07 p.m. CT
Where to Watch: KBME 790 AM/ ATT SportsNet-SW
Players To Watch:
Astros: José Altuve
Altuve's eighth All-Star appearance will be just another highlight in July for the veteran as he has been killing it from the batter's box so far. In July, Altuve is slugging .382/.476/.677 with two home runs and six RBI.
During the Astro's series against the Angels earlier in July, Altuve hit well over .500, while bringing in two runs and crossing the plate himself four times. To say that he has been an offensive juggernaut for Houston would be an understatement. He'll look to continue this trend well into the All-Star Game.
Jose Altuve watches his double travel into left field before leaving the batter's box.
Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
Angels: Shohei Ohtani
The defending AL MVP finds himself as the player to watch not due to his hitting so much, but rather his production from the mound. In the batter's box, Ohtani is struggling as he is hitting .182/.270/.364. But from the mound, Ohtani is a different beast.
Throughout his previous five starts, Ohtani has struck out 46 batters, while holding an ERA of 0.27 and keeping the opposing batters at bay. It's one thing for Ohtani to be cold from the plate, yet the Astros should look to crack his code on the mound, or else they may risk the game on Wednesday.
Shohei Ohtani celebrates with Mike Trout after Trout hit a home run against the Baltimore Orioles.
Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
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