Houston faces Oakland following Verlander's solid outing
Houston Astros (39-20, first in the AL West) vs. Oakland Athletics (29-29, third in the AL West)
Oakland, California; Sunday, 4 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Astros: Gerrit Cole (5-5, 4.02 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 112 strikeouts) Athletics: Chris Bassitt (3-1, 3.27 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 47 strikeouts)
LINE: Astros favored by 1 1/2 runs; over/under is 8 runs
BOTTOM LINE: The Athletics are 12-14 against the rest of their division. Oakland has hit 89 home runs this season, eighth in the MLB. Matt Chapman leads the team with 15, averaging one every 14.4 at-bats.
The Astros are 17-5 against AL Houston leads the American League in hitting with a .273 batting average, Michael Brantley leads the team with an average of .333. The Astros won the last meeting 5-1. Justin Verlander earned his ninth victory and Josh Reddick went 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs for Houston. Brett Anderson took his fourth loss for Oakland.
TOP PERFORMERS: Chapman leads the Athletics with 29 extra base hits and is batting .264. Mark Canha is 10-for-32 with two doubles, four home runs and eight RBIs over the last 10 games for Oakland.
Brantley leads the Astros with 26 extra base hits and is slugging .543. Alex Bregman is 10-for-37 with two doubles, three home runs and five RBIs over the last 10 games for Houston.
LAST 10 GAMES: Athletics: 6-4, .252 batting average, 4.21 ERA, outscored opponents by nine runs
Astros: 6-4, .243 batting average, 3.60 ERA, outscored by two runs
Athletics Injuries: Sean Manaea: 60-day IL (shoulder), Daniel Gossett: 60-day IL (elbow), Marco Estrada: 10-day IL (lumbar strain), Jharel Cotton: 60-day IL (elbow), Brett Anderson: day-to-day (side), Chris Herrmann: 60-day IL (knee).
Astros Injuries: Joe Smith: 10-day IL (achilles), Collin McHugh: 10-day IL (elbow), Lance McCullers Jr.: 10-day IL (elbow), George Springer: 10-day IL (hamstring), Aledmys Diaz: 10-day IL (hamstring), Carlos Correa: 10-day IL (rib), Jose Altuve: 10-day IL (hamstring), Max Stassi: 10-day IL (knee).
