Astros at Angels
The Los Angeles Angels could be without superstar Mike Trout on Monday when they begin a four-game series with the visiting Houston Astros. Trout left Sunday's 6-3 win over Seattle with calf tightness, leaving a potential gigantic hole for an Angels club that took all three from the Mariners and is 6-3 since the tragic loss of pitcher Tyler Skaggs.
Rookie third baseman Matt Thaiss, called up from the minors earlier this month, slugged his first career home run - a tiebreaking three-run shot in the eighth inning - to lift Los Angeles on Sunday. The Angels' surge has them within five games of a wild-card spot in the American League but they're still a distant 11 games behind the first-place Astros in the AL West. Houston earned a four-game series split in Texas with a 12-4 victory Sunday, as the streaking Yuri Gurriel went 3-for-5 with a home run and three RBIs. Houston was planning to activate Brad Peacock for Monday's start but the right-hander had a setback in his rehab and the team will be scrambling to fill some innings in the opener.
TV: 10:07 p.m. ET, MLB Network, AT&T SportsNet Southwest (Houston), FS West (Los Angeles)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Astros RH Josh James (4-0, 4.91 ERA) vs. Angels RH Griffin Canning (3-5, 4.43)
James will serve as the opener for the first time while making his fourth career start, the first of which saw him strike out nine Angels in five innings last season. He is expected to give way to struggling lefty Framber Valdez, who gave up four runs in just two-thirds of an inning at Texas on Thursday. The 25-year-old Valdez faced Los Angeles three times in 2018 and allowed a total of three runs in 16 innings.
Canning went into the All-Star break on a bad note after giving up six runs over 3 1/3 innings at Texas on July 4. He got through exactly six innings in five of his previous six starts, including a win against Oakland in his previous turn. The 23-year-old, who has yet to face the Astros, is 2-1 with a 3.41 ERA in six home starts.
WALK-OFFS
1. Trout will undergo an MRI on Monday. He told reporters after Sunday's win that he didn't think the injury was serious and that he wanted to stay in the game.
2. Gurriel has eight homers in nine games in July , including one in each of three meetings with the Angels earlier in the month.
3. Los Angeles RF Kole Calhoun has nine RBIs and eight runs scored over his last 10 games.