Astros Lineup vs. Reds: Houston Hoping to Ambush Reds' Nick Lodolo

The Houston Astros might finally have some good luck on their side.

In their series opener against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park, Nick Lodolo is scheduled to go for the home team — his first start of the season after recovering from a blister issue on his left index finger. On one hand, the team is receiving an extremely fortunate break by facing an arm with elite talent in his first appearance of the year. On the other hand, there’s every possibility in the world that Lodolo doesn’t miss a beat and sends the Astros lineup packing back to the dugout batter after batter.

Not many Astros hitters have experience against Lodolo. In fact, just three have faced him before: Nick Allen, Isaac Paredes and Christian Vázquez. Of those three, only Paredes has collected a hit off the former TCU Horned Frog. Conversely, plenty of Reds hitters have faced Astros starter Mike Burrows prior to tonight, though none have had great success against him either.

Of course, the Reds’ main priority when attacking the Astros’ batting order is to shut down Yordan Alvarez. He’s been on a tear to start the season, winning American League Player of the Month for March/April in the process. Christian Walker and Paredes must do a quality job of protecting Alvarez in the order because, if they don’t, Lodolo and the rest of the Reds’ pitching staff will have free rein to avoid him like the plague.

The good news is that getting away from Daikin Park is probably a good thing for the Astros, as the team hits decisively better on the road than at home. In contests at Daikin Park, Houston is slashing .232/.315/.421 compared to .288/.359/.437 on the road. What’s not encouraging is that the Astros’ pitching has been worse on the road than at home, which has often offset the increased offensive production.

Astros Lineup on May 8 vs. Reds

1. 2B Jose Altuve
2. DH Yordan Alvarez (L)
3. 3B Isaac Paredes
4. 1B Christian Walker
5. RF Cam Smith
6. CF Brice Matthews
7. LF Zach Dezenzo
8. C Christian Vázquez
9. SS Nick Allen

Houston will play two more games in Cincinnati following Friday's clash before heading back home for a seven-game homestand featuring series against two division rivals in the Seattle Mariners and the Texas Rangers. As for the rest of this weekend, Spencer Arrighetti will go for Houston on Saturday, May 9, while Chase Burns will oppose him. The series finale will see Reds LHP Andrew Abbott battle against a pitcher who is to be determined as of now.

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