Astros face the Indians following Valdez's strong performance

Updated Jul. 2, 2021 3:20 a.m. ET

Associated Press

Houston Astros (49-33, first in the AL West) vs. Cleveland Indians (42-36, second in the AL Central)

Cleveland; Friday, 7:10 p.m. EDT

PITCHING PROBABLES: Astros: Lance McCullers Jr. (5-1, 2.94 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 73 strikeouts) Indians: Sam Hentges (1-2, 7.32 ERA, 1.99 WHIP, 38 strikeouts)

LINE: Indians +164, Astros -190; over/under is 9 runs

BOTTOM LINE: Houston heads into the matchup after a strong showing by Framber Valdez. Valdez pitched seven innings, surrendering two runs on four hits with six strikeouts against Cleveland.

The Indians are 21-16 on their home turf. The Cleveland pitching staff averages 9.9 strikeouts per nine innings, Shane Bieber leads them with a mark of 12.9.

The Astros have gone 23-17 away from home. Houston leads the league in hitting with a .275 batting average, Michael Brantley leads the team with an average of .345.

The Astros won the last meeting 7-2. Framber Valdez earned his fifth victory and Jose Altuve went 1-for-3 with a home run and four RBIs for Houston. J.C. Mejia registered his third loss for Cleveland.

TOP PERFORMERS: Jose Ramirez leads the Indians with 18 home runs and has 51 RBIs.

Carlos Correa leads the Astros with 34 extra base hits and 49 RBIs.

LAST 10 GAMES: Indians: 4-6, .218 batting average, 5.42 ERA, outscored by 13 runs

Astros: 5-5, .262 batting average, 4.01 ERA, outscored opponents by 12 runs

INJURIES: Indians: Zach Plesac: (thumb), Cam Hill: (wrist), Aaron Civale: (finger), Shane Bieber: (shoulder), Eddie Rosario: (oblique), Josh Naylor: (ankle), Jordan Luplow: (ankle), Franmil Reyes: (side), Roberto Perez: (finger).

Astros: Justin Verlander: (elbow), Jose Urquidy: (arm), Joe Smith: (undisclosed), Austin Pruitt: (elbow), Enoli Paredes: (shoulder), Josh James: (hip), Kent Emanuel: (elbow), Pedro Baez: (right shoulder), Bryan Abreu: (calf), Aledmys Diaz: (hand), Alex Bregman: (hamstring).

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.