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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
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 |
| Robinson Cano | 29 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0.379 | 0.406 | 0.414 | 0.820 |
| Nelson Cruz | 21 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0.286 | 0.348 | 0.810 | 1.157 |
| Austin Jackson | 19 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0.263 | 0.263 | 0.263 | 0.526 |
| Seth Smith | 13 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0.308 | 0.333 | 0.385 | 0.718 |
| Dustin Ackley | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.222 | 0.222 | 0.222 | 0.444 |
| Brad Miller | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.667 | 0.667 | 0.667 | 1.333 |
| Kyle Seager | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.167 | 0.167 | 0.167 | 0.333 |
| Mike Zunino | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.333 | 0.333 | 1.333 | 1.667 |
| Willie Bloomquist | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Jesus Montero | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Logan Morrison | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.000 | 0.333 | 0.000 | 0.333 |
| Justin Ruggiano | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.000 |
| Rickie Weeks | 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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