Houston puts win streak on the line against Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay Rays (76-57, second in the AL East) vs. Houston Astros (86-47, first in the AL West)
Houston; Wednesday, 8 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Rays: Ryan Yarbrough (11-3, 3.29 ERA) Astros: Gerrit Cole (15-5, 2.75 ERA)
BOTTOM LINE: Houston enters the game as winners of their last five games.
The Astros are 50-16 on their home turf. Houston has slugged .490, good for second in the American League. Alex Bregman leads the club with a .566 slugging percentage, including 62 extra-base hits and 32 home runs.
The Rays are 42-26 on the road. Tampa Bay has hit 174 home runs as a team this season. Austin Meadows leads them with 23, averaging one every 18.3 at-bats.
TOP PERFORMERS: Michael Brantley leads the Astros with 163 hits and is batting .337. Alvarez is 8-for-30 with four doubles, four home runs and 10 RBIs over the last 10 games for Houston.
Tommy Pham leads the Rays with 126 hits and is batting .273. Meadows is 10-for-41 with four doubles, three home runs and nine RBIs over the last 10 games for Tampa Bay.
LAST 10 GAMES: Astros: 8-2, .299 batting average, 2.93 ERA, outscored opponents by 32 runs
Rays: 5-5, .227 batting average, 4.95 ERA, outscored by 22 runs
Astros Injuries: Aaron Sanchez: (pectoral), Ryan Pressly: (knee), Lance McCullers Jr.: (elbow), Josh James: (shoulder), Carlos Correa: (back).
Rays Injuries: Blake Snell: (elbow), Tyler Glasnow: (forearm), Yonny Chirinos: (finger), Jose Alvarado: (elbow), Kevin Kiermaier: (undisclosed), Brandon Lowe: (leg), Yandy Diaz: (foot).
