Houston @ San Diego preview
Petco Park
Last Meeting ( Jul 1, 2010 ) Houston 6, San Diego 3
One of the best veteran pitchers in the National League and one of the top up-and-comers square off Friday when the Houston Astros and San Diego Padres meet in the second contest of a four-game series in San Diego.
Perennial Padres killer and three-time All-Star Roy Oswalt will start for the Astros against 22-year-old phenom Mat Latos.
Oswalt is 10-2 lifetime with a 2.34 earned-run average against the Padres. He got a no-decision earlier this season when he gave up three runs in eight innings in Houston’s 4-3 win over San Diego on May 9.
The 32-year-old Oswalt is rumored to be on the trading block and the Padres certainly wouldn’t be heartbroken if the Astros shipped Oswalt to an American League team. One of the most interested teams is the Texas Rangers, who play in the AL West.
Oswalt has a 142-80 lifetime record but is just 5-10 this year despite pitching well most of the season.
His ERA jumped from 3.08 to its current 3.55 after he was bombed by Texas on Sunday. The Rangers ripped Oswalt for seven runs and eight hits in 4 2/3 innings.
Prior to the poor outing, Oswalt had given up two runs in seven innings in three consecutive starts.
Meanwhile, Latos has allowed two runs or less in 10 of his last 11 starts and has won seven of his last eight decisions.
Latos dominated the Astros in early May, throwing two-hit ball over eight innings in a 7-0 victory. Latos struck out nine and didn’t walk anyone.
A candidate for the National League All-Star team, Latos is 8-4 with a 2.85 ERA. He has held opposing hitters to a .197 average.
Both teams made roster moves on Thursday prior to the opening game of the series, won 6-3 by the Astros. The victory was Houston’s sixth in nine games.
Houston traded catcher Kevin Cash to the Boston Red Sox for infielder Angel Sanchez. The Astros needed a middle infielder with shortstop Tommy Manzanella (finger) expected to be sidelined until August.
San Diego activated reliever Tim Stauffer and pinch hitter Matt Stairs from the disabled list. Outfielder Aaron Cunningham was optioned to Triple-A Portland and reliever Sean Gallagher was designed for assignment.
Astros left fielder Carlos Lee was given a rest Thursday but will be back in the lineup today. Lee had five homers and 20 RBIs in June. He had just five homers and 21 RBIs over the first two months.
Padres third baseman Chase Headley was 3-for-4 in the opener and is hitting .393 (11-for-28) over the last seven games. He’s 3-for-10 (.300) lifetime with a homer against Oswalt.
San Diego first baseman Adrian Gonzalez went 0-for-5 Thursday and is 1-for-18 (.056) over the last four games. He’s a .400 (6-for-15) career hitter with two homers and six RBIs against Oswalt.