The Mariners showed up at Daikin Park and immediately hung a 3-1 and 10-2 on the Astros to push their head-to-head winning streak to 9 games. Then Tuesday night happened: Christian Walker homered, Zach Cole singled home the winner in the 10th, and Houston finally exhaled. Now Seattle gets a chance to salvage a series win, except the man with the ball is Luis Castillo.
Castillo is 0-4 with a 6.57 ERA and the conversation in Seattle is no longer about whether he bounces back — it's about whether he gets bumped to the bullpen. He's allowed 4+ runs in 6 of his last 7 starts, gave up two 2-run homers in 4 innings to the White Sox on May 9, and his K-rate has dropped 3 straight years. The Spokesman-Review and SI both floated a piggyback with Bryce Miller next time through. That's the backdrop for this start.
Mike Burrows answers for Houston, and the Astros would like you to know the 5.04 ERA is misleading. He's strung together back-to-back quality starts for the first time this year, including 7 scoreless against the Reds, and his xERA sits at 3.85. Acquired in that December 3-team deal with Pittsburgh, he's quietly been the steadiest non-Valdez option in a rotation that's been gutted by injuries.
- Day-To-DayCal Raleigh C — Raleigh was removed from Wednesday's game against the Astros with an apparent right side injury, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.
- Day-To-DayTeddy McGraw SP — McGraw is working his way back from right elbow issues, Jonathan Mayo of MLB Pipeline reports.
- 10-Day-ILPatrick Wisdom 1B — The Mariners placed Wisdom on the 10-day injured list Friday due to a left oblique strain, retroactive to Wednesday.
- 10-Day-ILVictor Robles RF — Robles (pectoral) will begin a rehab assignment at Triple-A Tacoma on Sunday, Adam Jude of The Seattle Times reports.
- 10-Day-ILWill Wilson 3B — The Mariners placed Wilson on the 10-day injured list Saturday due to a fractured left thumb.
- 15-Day-ILMatt Brash RP — Brash (lat) will throw a bullpen session Monday, Shannon Drayer of SeattleSports.com reports.
- paternityJose Ferrer RP — The Mariners placed Ferrer on the paternity leave list Monday.
- 15-Day-ILGabe Speier RP — The Mariners placed Speier on the 15-day injured list Monday with left shoulder inflammation, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.
- Day-To-DayWalker Janek C — Double-A Corpus Christi placed Janek on its 7-day injured list Sunday due to an unspecified injury.
- Day-To-DayLucas Spence OF — Double-A Corpus Christi placed Spence on its 7-day injured list April 22 due to an unspecified injury.
- 10-Day-ILJeremy Pena SS — Pena (hamstring) is dealing with neck soreness following a collision with a runner during a rehab game Tuesday, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.
- 10-Day-ILJake Meyers CF — Meyers (oblique) is slated to begin a rehab assignment this week, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.
- 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.
- 10-Day-ILJoey Loperfido LF — The Astros announced Monday that Loperfido (quadriceps) has started light running and light baseball activity, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.
- 10-Day-ILTaylor Trammell CF — The Astros announced Monday that Trammell (groin) has begun a running progression in addition to taking part in light baseball activity, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.
- 10-Day-ILYainer Diaz C — The Astros placed Diaz (oblique) on the 10-day injured list Tuesday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
The injury sheet is brutal on both sides, but Houston is operating on a different plane. Carlos Correa is done for the year after ankle surgery, Jeremy Pena hit a setback with neck soreness on his rehab, and Hunter Brown, Josh Hader and Yainer Diaz are all still out. Seattle's bigger worry is short-term: Cal Raleigh was pulled in the 8th Wednesday grabbing his right side, the second time it's flared up this month. Dan Wilson called it precautionary. We'll see if he's even available off the bench.
The market makes Seattle a -130 road favorite with the total parked at 9, and DraftKings has 92% of the moneyline handle on the Mariners — sharp money agrees, EV is positive on Seattle ML. The only catch is that you're paying a premium to back a starter the home fanbase wants benched against a guy who's been the Astros' best version of himself the last 2 weeks.
Houston has lost 4 of 5 and is staring at 17-27. If they can't take a series at home from a Mariners team running Castillo out there, the questions about this roster are going to get a lot louder. First pitch 1:10 CT.