Framber Valdez (4-5, 3.91 ERA) draws Kai-Wei Teng (4-6, 4.03 ERA) at 1:10 PM ET in Comerica Park — and the biggest subplot here is that Valdez is now a Tiger, not an Astro. He was Houston's workhorse for the better part of a decade before Detroit opened the checkbook, and today he gets the reunion game against the club that cut him loose.
This series is knotted at 1. Houston edged Detroit 2-1 in the opener Thursday night, then got steamrolled 8-0 on Friday when Keider Montero threw 7 scoreless innings and the Tigers put up 3 home runs. Now it's Game 3 of 4, and whichever team wins today has real momentum heading into Sunday's finale.
Valdez has been the best version of himself in June. He's posted a 2.45 ERA through 4 starts this month — a big step up from a rocky May — and his last 2 starts border on unfair: 12 innings combined, 1 earned run. The outing against the Yankees last Monday (6 IP, 1 ER, 8 K on 94 pitches) is exactly what Detroit paid for. The Astros know better than anyone what a locked-in Valdez looks like: sinker down in the zone, weak contact, ground balls everywhere.
Teng finally looked like himself against Cleveland last Sunday — 6 innings, 1 run, 4 strikeouts — snapping a brutal stretch where he went 0-3 with an 8.83 ERA over 4 starts. The adjustment was concrete: catcher Christian Vázquez steered him toward 4-seam fastballs (45% of pitches on the day) and leaned on the changeup over the sweeper. Whether that carries against a lineup he hasn't seen since that bounce-back is the legitimate question heading into today.
- 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-ILNick Allen SS — Allen (hamstring) resumed taking batting practice and shagging flyballs over the weekend, MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILLaMonte Wade Jr. 1B — Wade (hamstring) has resumed taking batting practice and shagging flyballs and is expected to head out on a minor-league rehab assignment soon, MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILBraden Shewmake SS — The Astros announced Monday that Shewmake (adductor) has taken part in baseball activity and is working his way through a running progression at the team's facility in Florida, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.
- 15-Day-ILLance McCullers Jr. SP — McCullers (shoulder) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Sugar Land on Thursday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILBennett Sousa RP — The Astros announced Friday that Sousa (elbow) has begun a throwing progression, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.
- 60-Day-ILCristian Javier SP — Javier (shoulder) struck out five and allowed three earned runs on five hits and three walks across 4.2 innings Sunday in his rehab start with Triple-A Sugar Land.
- 60-Day-ILRonel Blanco SP — Blanco (elbow) struck out five over three scoreless frames in his first rehab start with the Astros' Florida Complex League affiliate Friday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
- Day-To-DayJosue Briceno C — Briceno said Friday that he expects to be sidelined a few months after having surgery Wednesday to repair a tendon in his right wrist, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.
- 10-Day-ILGleyber Torres 2B — Torres (oblique) received a cortisone injection Friday and is expected to start up his rehab program in the next day or two, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.
- 15-Day-ILJack Flaherty SP — Flaherty (ankle) is expected to return from the 15-day injured list to start Sunday against the Astros, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.
- 60-Day-ILJackson Jobe SP — Jobe (elbow) will throw live batting practice Saturday, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.
- 60-Day-ILWenceel Perez RF — Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said Tuesday that Perez won't require surgery for the left orbital fracture he sustained June 16, but the outfielder lacks a clear timeline for a return, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports. "It's not, from what I understand, where it's going to be something long term," Hinch said of Perez's injury. "But it doesn't mean it heals itself fast. He's feeling better and better and reporting progress."
- 60-Day-ILParker Meadows CF — Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said Tuesday that Meadows (forearm) has yet to resume hitting and is without a timeline to return from the 60-day injured list, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.
- 60-Day-ILBurch Smith RP — The Tigers transferred Smith (shoulder) from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Tuesday.
- 60-Day-ILJustin Verlander SP — Verlander (hip) has been scratched from a scheduled start Sunday versus the White Sox due to a left hamstring injury, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.
Both clubs are beat up. The Astros have lost Carlos Correa to season-ending ankle surgery, and their rotation is missing Javier, Blanco, McCullers, and Wesneski — a staggering amount of pitching depth to burn through before the All-Star break. Detroit isn't healthy either: Verlander, Jobe, Torres, and Baez are all unavailable. Houston is 40-44 and needs wins in bunches to stay relevant in the AL Wild Card race; dropping Game 3 here would put them in an ugly spot with the series still ongoing.