Astros at Brewers
Clutch hitting and a dominant rotation are the biggest reasons why the first-place Houston Astros are steamrolling toward their third straight American League West title as they visit the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday in the finale of their two-game series. One day after Abraham Toro's ninth inning home run paved the way for Justin Verlander's no-hitter, George Springer belted a home run in the 10th of Houston's 3-2 victory Monday - its 12th win in 15 games.
The Astros, who are also trying for their third consecutive 100-victory season, lead Oakland by 10 1/2 games with 23 to play. Milwaukee, which trails first-place St. Louis by seven games in the National League Central, also took a step back in the wild card race as it is four behind the Chicago Cubs for the final spot. The Brewers' Christian Yelich on Monday homered for the second straight game as his solo shot in the ninth inning pushed the contest into extras and gave him 43 on the season, one behind Los Angeles Dodgers' outfielder Cody Bellinger. Houston's Zack Greinke takes the ball Tuesday in search of his ninth 15-win season and opposes Jordan Lyles, who has done all he can to keep the Brewers postseason relevant.
TV: 7:40 p.m. ET, AT&T SportsNet Southwest (Houston), FS Wisconsin (Milwaukee)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Astros RH Zack Greinke (14-4, 2.99 ERA) vs. Brewers RH Jordan Lyles (9-8, 4.55)
Greinke was 4-0 with a 2.45 ERA in four starts with Houston before receiving a no-decision in the Astros' 9-8 loss to Tampa Bay on Thursday, allowing five runs and six hits (two home runs) over 5 2/3 innings. "... Everything about it was bad,'' the 35-year-old Florida native, who was 25-9 in 49 starts with Milwaukee in 2011-12, told reporters. "It's kind of frustrating. I lost the game. I gave up more runs than I would've liked, especially when you're feeling pretty good." Yasmani Grandal is 11-for-42 with two home runs and 11 strikeouts versus Greinke, who is 1-4 with a 3.86 ERA in nine career games (eight starts) against the Brewers after a no-decision July 20 during which he yielded two runs with nine strikeouts in seven innings.
Lyles is 4-1 with a 2.51 ERA in six outings since returning to Milwaukee after permitting one run and six hits while striking out nine over 5 1/3 innings of a 4-1 victory against St. Louis on Wednesday. "Obviously these are huge games for us right now," the 28-year-old South Carolina native told reporters. "But I didn’t even think about it the last two days. I’m on a major league mound facing major league hitters. I’ve got way too much to worry about than to worry about being that quote-unquote stopper." Lyles faced Houston only once, striking out four in two innings of relief last season.
WALK-OFFS
1. Astros OF Yordan Alvarez belted his 22nd home run Monday, tying the franchise rookie record set by Carlos Correa in 2015.
2. Grandal is 2-for-25 in his last eight games, homering on both occasions.
3. Houston pitchers own the top four ERAs in the American League with Verlander (2.56), Gerrit Cole (2.81, 14 strikeouts in six innings Monday), Greinke and Wade Miley (3.06), although Greinke officially doesn't qualify since 23 of his 28 starts came with Arizona.