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Game No. 25 Preview: Houston Astros vs. Seattle Mariners

Houston gun for their third-straight series sweep as they face the last pitcher to beat in nine games, J.A. Happ.

Stacy Revere/Getty Images

Houston Astros (17-7) vs. Seattle Mariners (10-14), 1:10 p.m. (CST)

TV: Roots Sports SW, MLB.TV 
Radio: KBME 790 AM, KLAT 1010 AM
Mariners SBNation BlogLookout Landing

Pitching matchup

RHP Roberto Hernandez (1-2, 3.80 ERA, 1.14 WHIP) vs. LHP J.A. Happ (2-1, 2.30 ERA, 1.06 WHIP)

Preview

The Astros have nine-straight wins. Who would have guessed this start to the season? Probably some Houston diehards would have, but for the most part the Astros are playing like they're years ahead of the "Process". Sure, they're getting outstanding hitting and pitching from unlikely sources that are more than likely regress at some point. But there are many elements that could be regression-proof - the fielding, the power, and the bullpen. So the Astros could be for real, time to start jumping on the bandwagon.

Roberto Hernandez take the mound today to keep the Astros good times rolling. Hernandez has done exactly what the Astros were looking for, he has kept games close and is eating up innings as the fifth starter. Hernandez has three-straight quality starts coming into Sunday's game. On April 22, Hernandez faced the Mariners, allowing three runs over seven innings on six hits.

SEATTLE MARINERS CAREER STATISTICS VS. ROBERTO HERNANDEZ
BATTER AB H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS
29 11 1 0 0 5 2 1 0.379 0.406 0.414 0.820
21 6 0 1 3 6 0 6 0.286 0.348 0.810 1.157
19 5 0 0 0 1 0 3 0.263 0.263 0.263 0.526
13 4 1 0 0 1 0 3 0.308 0.333 0.385 0.718
9 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.222 0.222 0.222 0.444
3 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0.667 0.667 0.667 1.333
6 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.167 0.167 0.167 0.333
3 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0.333 0.333 1.333 1.667
3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.000 0.333 0.000 0.333
3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

The Astros face the last pitcher that defeated them in nine games, J.A. Happ. The former Astro out dueled Hernandez in the Mariners' 3-2 win on April 22. Happ has been the answer to who will be number two behind Felix Hernandez. Happ has four quality starts this season in as many outings, including his most recent start - 6.2 IP, 1 ER against Texas on April 28.

HOUSTON ASTROS CAREER STATISTICS VS. J.A. HAPP
BATTER AB H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS
Chris Carter"]" style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Chris Carter 8 3 0 0 1 1 1 3 0.375 0.444 0.750 1.194
Jed Lowrie"]" style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Jed Lowrie 8 3 1 0 0 0 0 1 0.375 0.375 0.500 0.875
Colby Rasmus"]" style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Colby Rasmus 12 3 2 0 0 1 4 2 0.250 0.438 0.417 0.854
Jose Altuve"]" style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Jose Altuve 7 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 0.143 0.143 0.143 0.286
Jason Castro"]" style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Jason Castro 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
Matt Dominguez"]" style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Matt Dominguez 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0.000 0.333 0.000 0.333
Evan Gattis 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
Robbie Grossman 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0.000 0.333 0.000 0.333
L.J. Hoes"]" style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">L.J. Hoes 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
Jake Marisnick"]" style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Jake Marisnick 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
Jon Singleton"]" style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Jon Singleton 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
George Springer"]" style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">George Springer 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
Luis Valbuena"]" style="padding: 2px 3px 2px 3px; vertical-align: bottom;">Luis Valbuena 6 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0.000 0.143 0.000 0.143

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