Houston Astros (41-58) at Oakland Athletics (61-37), 9:05 p.m. (CST)
TV: CSN Houston, MLB.TV
Radio: KBME 790 AM, KLAT 1010 AM
Athletics SBNation Blog: Athletics Nation
Pitching matchup
LHP Brett Oberholtzer (2-7, 4.50 ERA, 1.44 WHIP) vs. LHP Scott Kazmir (11-3, 2.38 ERA, 0.98 WHIP)
Preview
There is no easy way to put this, the Athletics have own the Astros since they moved to the American League. Houston has six wins and twenty losses against Oakland since 2013, including a 2-5 record this season. While the script has changed a bit as Houston with the Astros one game ahead of the Rangers for the fifth spot in the AL West. The Athletics have stayed the corse, once again leading the West.
One key to this sucess has been the contiued resorrection of Scott Kazmir. Kazmir was easy to find for Houstonians in 2012, he was a quick trip down 59 to Sugar Land. The Houston-native was out of Major League Baseball and pitching for the Atlantic League's Sugar Land Skeeters. After a good season last year with the Indians, Kazmir signed with the A's this offseason and he hasn't looked back. He is third in the AL in ERA (2.38) and WHIP (0.98). He has allowed two earned runs over his last 19.1 innings - striking out 24 and walking six during that strech.
In two back-to-back starts (April 19, 24) against Houston this season, he has given up three earned runs over 14 innings - 11 H, 2 BB, 12 K. Looking at the Astros and Kazmir, Jose Altuve has done well against the lefty - 6-for-13 with two doubles. Chris Carter is 3-for-8 with a double. L.J. Hoes is 2-for-7 with two doubles.
Since the All-Star Break, Jose Altuve hasn't dropped off - he's 5-14 with a home run and double. Kike Hernandez has hit his way into the starting rotation batting .455 (5-11) since the break. Robbie Grossman has a hit in seven of his last nine games.
Brett Oberholtzer takes the mound for the Astros today to add another chapter to his ongoing job interview with the Astros. Obe' has been the guy bouncing between the majors and the farms for Houston this season, will this start help him stick or send him back with McHugh is healthy? Thus far in July he has 4.97 ERA in 12.2 innings. His last start, he held the Red Sox to tow runs over 6.2 innings.
On April 19, Obi Won faced the A's -holding them to one run over 5.2 innings. Looking at the A's lineup, a few players have hit the Astros lefty hard. Yoenis Cespedes is 3-for-8 with a home run. Josh Donaldson is 4-for-8 with two doubles and home run. Craig Gentry is 3-for-8 with two doubles. Former Astros Jed Lowrie is 3-for-9 with a double.
Cespedes has seen no effects from winning the Home Run Derby for a second time this season, he is 5-fo-13 since the break with a double. Nor has the All-Star game affected Josh Donaldson, who is 4-for-12 with a home run and double since the break.