Texas @ Houston preview
Minute Maid Park
Last Meeting ( Jul 12, 2024 ) Texas 3, Houston 6
The Houston Astros have a ways to go to match their franchise-best 18-game win streak at Minute Maid Park, set in 2004. But with their 6-3 victory over the Texas Rangers on Friday in the opener of a three-game series that caps the first half of the season, the Astros' home streak hit double digits.
Houston hasn't lost at home since the Detroit Tigers beat them 13-5 on June 15. And the fact that the 10th win in that streak came against the Rangers was especially satisfying, given that Texas won all four games in Houston during the 2023 American League Championship Series en route to its first World Series championship.
A victory on Saturday would clinch a series win for the Astros. And, after finishing last season with a 39-42 mark at Minute Maid Park, another win would push those unusual struggles deeper in the past. They are 28-19 on home turf in 2024.
"I'm not counting," Astros manager Joe Espada said of the home win streak. "From the beginning of the season, it came up a few times. I told the players we're not going to talk about that. It's in the past. I've been here for seven years, and one year we don't play well at home and now it's a story. No.
"We're a really good team, we've always played well at home. We see the ball well at home. It's in the past. That stuff is in the past."
Rookie right-hander Spencer Arrighetti (4-7, 5.96 ERA) is the scheduled starter for the Astros on Saturday. He has alternated wins and losses over his past six decisions and 10 starts, going 3-3 with a 5.10 ERA during that stretch. He did not factor into the decision of a 3-2 road loss to the Minnesota Twins on Sunday after allowing two runs on seven hits and two walks with six strikeouts over five innings.
Arrighetti will make his first career start against the Rangers.
Veteran right-hander Nathan Eovaldi (6-3, 3.10) has the starting assignment for the Rangers. He has logged seven innings in each of his past three starts including against the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday, when he allowed two runs on four hits with five strikeouts in a 13-2 victory. Eovaldi is 5-1 with a 3.00 ERA over his past 10 starts.
Eovaldi is 3-5 with a 4.73 ERA in 11 career starts against the Astros. In Texas' 8-5 road loss to the Astros on April 14, Eovaldi allowed five runs on eight hits including two solo homers to Jose Altuve -- and two walks with three strikeouts over six innings.
The Rangers' underwhelming offense has been central to their disappointing first half. Texas enters play Saturday ranked eighth in the AL in batting (.243), slugging (.384) and OPS (.694) after ranking first in all three categories last season. Marcus Semien (3-for-3, run) and Corey Seager (2-for-4, three RBIs) accounted for five of the Rangers' seven hits in the series opener.
"We had five hits between the first two guys," Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said. "Not much after that. That's probably what did us in."
--Field Level Media