Astros begin 3-game series with the Angels
Los Angeles Angels (60-77, third in the AL West) vs. Houston Astros (88-49, first in the AL West)
Houston; Friday, 8:10 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Angels: Michael Lorenzen (0-0); Astros: Lance McCullers Jr. (2-1, 2.08 ERA, 1.52 WHIP, 20 strikeouts)
LINE: Astros -232, Angels +189; over/under is 8 runs
BOTTOM LINE: The Houston Astros host the Los Angeles Angels on Friday to open a three-game series.
Houston has an 88-49 record overall and a 45-21 record in home games. The Astros have a 39-13 record in games when they did not allow a home run.
Los Angeles is 60-77 overall and 29-37 in road games. The Angels have the ninth-best team ERA in MLB play at 3.79.
Friday's game is the 17th time these teams match up this season. The Astros hold an 11-5 advantage in the season series.
TOP PERFORMERS: Yordan Alvarez has a .289 batting average to lead the Astros, and has 18 doubles, two triples and 31 home runs. Jose Altuve is 14-for-39 with three home runs and seven RBI over the last 10 games.
Taylor Ward has 15 doubles, two triples and 17 home runs for the Angels. Shohei Ohtani is 13-for-38 with two doubles and six home runs over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Astros: 7-3, .222 batting average, 1.55 ERA, outscored opponents by 14 runs
Angels: 6-4, .246 batting average, 3.35 ERA, outscored opponents by five runs
INJURIES: Astros: Justin Verlander: 15-Day IL (calf), Ryan Pressly: 15-Day IL (neck), Aledmys Diaz: 10-Day IL (groin), Michael Brantley: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Jason Castro: 60-Day IL (knee), Blake Taylor: 60-Day IL (elbow), Josh James: 60-Day IL (lat)
Angels: Jhonathan Diaz: 60-Day IL (undisclosed), Jared Walsh: 60-Day IL (rib), Mickey Moniak: 10-Day IL (finger), Michael Lorenzen: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Archie Bradley: 60-Day IL (elbow), Anthony Rendon: 60-Day IL (wrist), Chris Rodriguez: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Griffin Canning: 60-Day IL (back)
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
