Yusei Kikuchi vs. Framber Valdez, 6:10pm
The M’s head back to Houston, where this bizarre season began. The Astros no longer seem like an unstoppable juggernaut, and are a good ways back of the surging Oakland A’s. Their line-up is hitting reasonably well, though quite a bit behind their standards of 2017-2019, but they’re struggling to play defense. The pitching is stuck in a similar predicament. They’re not out and out awful, but after years of being the best or one of the best teams in the game, being mediocre must seem pretty shocking.
Tonight’s starter, Framber Valdez, has been the best of an inconsistent bunch of starters.