Twelve games remain in the regular season for the Houston Astros and Texas Rangers. At 75-75, the Astros hold a one-game lead over their in-state rivals in the race to win the American League West Division. With it comes the easiest path to the playoffs for both teams.
It is two teams going in opposite directions. Houston will open a three-game series at home against the Kansas City Royals on Tuesday night after being swept by the Tampa Bay Rays over the weekend. The Rangers will open a three-game series at home against the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday night after winning a series over the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The final 12 games will determine who hosts the third and final AL wild-card team in two weeks in the playoffs. If the two teams finish tied after 162 games, Houston owns the tiebreaker. They won the season series over Texas. That is huge. Houston has announced two of their three starters against the Royals.
Houston Astros Announce Starters Against Kansas City Royals
This is the final home-stand of the season for the Astros. They will host the Atlanta Braves for three games over the weekend. They close out the season with two games on the road against the Seattle Mariners and four against the Athletics. Here are the matchups for the Kansas City series.
Tuesday: Michael Wacha (9-8, 3.25 ERA) vs. Hunter Brown (5-3, 3.52 ERA), 7:10 p.m. CDT
Wednesday: Daniel Lynch (5-5, 3.52 ERA) vs. Cristian Javier (2-5, 5.50 ERA), 7:10 p.m. CDT
Thursday: Seth Lugo (7-8, 4.99 ERA) vs. TBD, 6:15 p.m. CDT
Manager Joe Espada has announced starters for the first two games. However, Thursday’s game does not have a starter announced. Furthermore, it will likely be a bullpen game for the Astros, with the Braves looming over the weekend.
Brown has been Houston’s best starter when healthy this season. The Astros’ other consistent arm has been Hayden Wesneski, but he was roughed up by the Rays on Sunday in a 14-4 loss. It would be surprising if Espada brought him back on short rest against Kansas City. He will be on normal rest to start the series against Atlanta on Friday night.
Houston Astros Have Control of Division Race
As mentioned, Houston holds a one-game lead going into this series. It feels more like two games because of holding the tiebreaker. Basically, they just need to finish in a tie to secure the division. As a result of doing that, they would host the wild-card round.
That would be somewhat surprising after the beginning of the season they had. They dealt with numerous injuries to their pitching staff, but survived to take control of a division that nobody took control of. However, finishing 81-81 could very well win the division. The Mariners are 5.5 games back entering play on Tuesday night. That’s too much ground to make up in a short amount of time.
Houston parted ways with general manager Dana Brown last month, and Espada is managing for his job beyond this season. Winning the division would help, but advancing in the playoffs will be key. Getting there first, however, is priority No. 1.
Houston Astros Announce Probable Starting Pitchers in Pivotal Series Against Royals