Houston @ San Francisco preview
Oracle Park
Last Meeting ( May 14, 2010 ) Houston 2, San Francisco 8
Roy Oswalt makes his first trip to the mound Saturday since publicly expressing his willingness to allow the Houston Astros to trade him to a contending team.
The Astros’ ace will be matched up against two-time Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum and the host San Francisco Giants in the second of a three-game series.
Oswalt would prefer to remain with Houston but has indicated he understands the business of baseball and would waive his no-trade clause if the Astros wish to move him to a true contender.
The 32-year-old Oswalt has spent his entire career with the Astros and is under contract through 2011 with a club option for 2012.
Oswalt has a 139-74 career mark. If the Astros do decide to move him, he’s the type of talent that would allow the club to acquire three or four players in return.
He has pitched well in 2010, but only has a 2-4 record through seven starts. Houston scored two or fewer runs in all four of his losses.
Oswalt, who last won on April 23, has a 2.63 ERA and has struck out 45 batters in 48 innings.
One of Oswalt’s defeats was to Lincecum and the Giants on April 5. He allowed three runs and seven hits on six innings.
Oswalt is 5-6 lifetime with a 3.76 ERA in 14 career starts against San Francisco.
Lincecum hurled seven shutout innings in the April 5 game against Houston. He allowed four hits, struck out seven and didn’t walk anyone.
Lincecum (4-0, 1.86 ERA) has endured three consecutive no-decisions despite allowing two runs in two of the starts and three in the other. He has struck out 32 batters in 21 1/3 innings during that span.
Overall, Lincecum has fanned a major-league high 64 batters while walking just 10 in seven starts. He has struck out at least seven in every start and has three double-digit strikeout games.
In six career starts against Houston, Lincecum is 3-0 with a 1.37 ERA.
The Giants won Friday’s opening contest of the series to halt a three-game losing skid and also end Houston’s four-game winning streak.
San Francisco third baseman Pablo Sandoval showed signs of breaking out of a deep May slump by going 2-for-4, but had to leave the game in the eighth after being hit on the foot by a pitch. Sandoval was just 5-for-48 in May entering Friday’s game.
Houston right fielder Hunter Pence hit his fourth homer in the past five games while stretching his hitting streak to six games. Pence leads the Astros with six homers.
Astros first baseman Lance Berkman continued his hot hitting by going 2-for-4 with an RBI. Berkman has 9 hits in his last 18 at-bats.