Astros at Twins
After dropping two straight games in Houston last week to lose the series, the Minnesota Twins took out their frustrations by sweeping a three-game set versus Baltimore. The Twins hope to continue their surge and exact some revenge when they host the Astros on Monday for the opener of their four-game series.
Minnesota swept a three-game set in Baltimore and took the opener in Houston last Monday before being outscored 17-5 in back-to-back defeats. The Twins proceeded to trounce the Orioles 19-4 while belting 12 home runs during their series, which concluded with a 4-1 triumph on Sunday in which Max Kepler and Byron Buxton hitting solo shots. Houston earned a split of its four-game set against visiting Cleveland by posting a 4-1 victory of its own on Sunday, scoring all of its runs in the seventh inning. Robinson Chirinos, who highlighted the frame with a three-run homer, has gone 9-for-23 with four two-hit performances over his last seven games.
TV: 7:40 p.m. ET, AT&T SportsNet Southwest (Houston), FS North (Minnesota)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Astros RH Justin Verlander (4-0, 2.61 ERA) vs. Twins RH Jake Odorizzi (2-2, 4.37)
Verlander has allowed just one run in each of his four victories, including a home triumph over Minnesota on Wednesday in which he yielded four hits over a season-high eight innings. The 36-year-old former American League MVP has given up a total of 12 hits over 28 frames in his wins, registering 36 strikeouts while issuing only four walks. Including the victory last time out, Verlander is 20-9 with two complete games and a 2.94 ERA in 37 career starts against the Twins.
Odorizzi has been idle since last Monday, when he allowed two runs and eight hits without issuing a walk over 5 2/3 innings in a win at Houston. It was the second straight victory for the 29-year-old native of Illinois, who suffered back-to-back losses after a superb season debut against Cleveland in which he gave up one run on one hit - a solo homer - with two walks and 11 strikeouts over six frames. With the triumph last week, Odorizzi improved to 4-1 with a 2.29 ERA in six career turns versus the Astros.
WALK-OFFS
1. Twins INF-OF Marwin Gonzalez, who spent his first seven major-league seasons with the Astros before leaving as a free agent this past winter, went 0-for-11 against his former team last week.
2. Houston OF Josh Reddick has been held without a hit in three of his last four contests following a seven-game hitting streak that featured a trio of three-hit efforts and a pair of two-hit performances.
3. Minnesota placed C-INF Willians Astudillo (hamstring) on the 10-day injured list and recalled OF Jake Cave from Triple-A Rochester.