Houston takes on Boston after Valdez's strong performance

Boston Red Sox (32-23, second in the AL East) vs. Houston Astros (31-24, second in the AL West)

Houston; Thursday, 2:10 p.m. EDT

PITCHING PROBABLES: Red Sox: Martin Perez (3-2, 3.55 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 48 strikeouts) Astros: Jake Odorizzi (0-2, 6.75 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 15 strikeouts)

BOTTOM LINE: Houston heads into the matchup fresh off a strong showing by Framber Valdez. Valdez threw seven innings, giving up one run on five hits with 10 strikeouts against Boston.

The Astros are 20-12 on their home turf. Houston's team on-base percentage of .332 is third in the MLB. Alex Bregman leads the lineup with an OBP of .379.

The Red Sox have gone 16-10 away from home. Boston ranks third in the majors in hitting with a .256 batting average, J.D. Martinez leads the team with an average of .315.

The Astros won the last meeting 2-1. Framber Valdez earned his first victory and Kyle Tucker went 2-for-3 with a double for Houston. Nick Pivetta registered his first loss for Boston.

TOP PERFORMERS: Tucker leads the Astros with 11 home runs and has 35 RBIs.

Rafael Devers leads the Red Sox with 14 home runs and has 43 RBIs.

LAST 10 GAMES: Astros: 5-5, .228 batting average, 3.63 ERA, outscored by two runs

Red Sox: 5-5, .212 batting average, 4.23 ERA, outscored by two runs

INJURIES: Astros: Justin Verlander: (elbow), Austin Pruitt: (elbow), Lance McCullers Jr.: (shoulder), Josh James: (hip), Kent Emanuel: (elbow), Pedro Baez: (right shoulder), Bryan Abreu: (calf), Michael Brantley: (hamstring), Jason Castro: (achilles).

Red Sox: Chris Sale: (elbow), Ryan Brasier: (left calf).

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