Houston's answer was quieter: outfielder Daulton Varsho, flipped from Toronto for injured pitcher Spencer Arrighetti, addresses an Astros outfield that's been running near the bottom of the league in production while Brice Matthews works his way back from a knee issue. The betting market has Houston as a live moneyline dog here despite Petco favoring the home side on the run line.
Houston split its last homestand, taking 2 straight from Texas before dropping 2 of 3 to Toronto, and they've now lost their most recent game. San Diego's been the opposite, alternating losses and wins across its last 5 but capping the stretch with a win, and getting a much-needed jolt from the two new arms after a rotation that's been bleeding starters for months.
That injury list is the story for San Diego. Musgrove, Pivetta, Giolito, Adam and Hoeing are all out, which is exactly why the front office went out and bought two starters instead of hoping for internal fixes. Houston's issues are more top-of-lineup than pitching staff: Correa is still working back from an ankle injury with real hope of returning before the season ends, and Matthews remains without a firm setback-free return date. Blanco, for his part, has been homer-prone since coming back, and a rotation ERA that's been among the league's worst puts extra pressure on him to keep the ball in the yard against a lineup that just got sneakier with two new arms of its own.