The Astros are 4-1 over their last 5 and just steamrolled their way through a sweep that included a 15-run outburst across three games against Chicago. Meanwhile the Rangers limp home having dropped 4 straight, and the records (24-31 Houston, 24-29 Texas) tell you exactly how strange this AL West has gotten. First pitch is 7:05 PM at Globe Life.
Jason Alexander gets the ball for Houston, which is less a vote of confidence and more a function of how shredded the rotation is. He's the 13th different pitcher to start a game for the Astros this year. He did go 6 innings on 80 pitches against the Twins last time out, so credit where it's due — but a 7.30 ERA is a 7.30 ERA. Jack Leiter (1-4, 4.61) counters, and the last time he saw this Astros lineup he was lights out: 7 innings, 3 hits, 1 earned run.
The injury column is where this thing gets ugly for both sides. Houston is functionally fielding a Triple-A roster: Altuve, Correa, Yainer Diaz, Hader, Hunter Brown, McCullers, Blanco — that's most of a contending team's spine sitting in the trainer's room. Texas isn't much better off, with Seager out with a back issue not getting re-evaluated for another week, Langford still working back from the forearm, and Josh Jung scratched again with the shoulder.
- Day-To-DayWalker Janek C — Double-A Corpus Christi placed Janek on its 7-day injured list Sunday due to an unspecified injury.
- 10-Day-ILJoey Loperfido LF — Astros manager Joe Espada told reporters Monday that Loperfido (quadriceps) will pause his rehab assignment until Wednesday after fouling a ball off his foot during Sunday's game with Double-A Corpus Christie, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILYainer Diaz C — Astros general manager Dana Brown said Sunday that Diaz (oblique) is expected to begin a rehab assignment during the first week of June, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILJose Altuve 2B — Astros manager Joe Espada said Sunday that Altuve (oblique) is expected to resume swinging a bat "in the next day or two," Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.
- 10-Day-ILTaylor Trammell CF — Trammell (groin) began a rehab assignment with Double-A Corpus Christi on Tuesday, going 1-for-4 with a double.
- 10-Day-ILCarlos Correa SS — Correa is scheduled to undergo surgery Monday in Houston to repair the tendon in his left ankle, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILLance McCullers Jr. SP — McCullers was scratched from his scheduled start against the Twins on Tuesday due to shoulder inflammation, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.
- 15-Day-ILBennett Sousa RP — The Astros placed Sousa on the 15-day injured list Saturday with left elbow inflammation, retroactive to Wednesday, Julia Morales of Space City Home Network reports.
- Day-To-DayJosh Jung 3B — Jung (shoulder) remains out of the lineup for Monday's contest against the Astros.
- Day-To-DaySebastian Walcott SS — Rangers GM Ross Fenstermaker said Tuesday that Walcott could be ready for game action in August, "if all things according to plan" in his rehab from the internal brace procedure he underwent on his right elbow, Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News reports.
- 10-Day-ILJosh Smith 2B — Smith (illness) is expected to return to Globe Life Field this week, but it's unclear when he'll be ready to ramp up his baseball activities, Jeff Wilson of AllDLLS.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILWyatt Langford LF — Langford (forearm) will take batting practice Monday and could begin a rehab assignment as soon as this weekend, Kennedi Landry of MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILCorey Seager SS — Seager (back) isn't slated to be re-evaluated for "probably another week," Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News reports.
- 10-Day-ILCody Freeman 3B — Freeman (back) moved his rehab from the Arizona Complex League to Double-A Frisco on Friday, MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILCole Winn RP — Winn (0-1) took the loss against Pittsburgh on Wednesday, allowing three runs on two hits while striking out one over one-third of an inning.
- 15-Day-ILRobert Garcia RP — Garcia (shoulder) began throwing from 80 feet out Friday, Jeff Wilson of AllDLLS.com reports.
The market has Texas as a moderate home favorite at -132, with the total parked at 8. Worth flagging: the spread is mismatched between books — DK has it at 1.5, Pinnacle at 1 — and EV is negative across the board, so there's no free lunch here. Public money is leaning Rangers ML and Astros run-line, which tracks with the recent vibes more than the season record.
The narrative pick is Houston riding the heater into a 5th straight, but the actual pitching matchup says Leiter over Alexander every day of the week. If the Astros bullpen, minus Hader, can survive whatever Alexander leaves behind, this is a coin flip. If Alexander gets touched up early, it's a Rangers laugher and Texas finally stops the bleeding.