Astros take on the Guardians in first of 3-game series

Cleveland Guardians (40-35, second in the AL Central) vs. Houston Astros (35-41, fourth in the AL West)

Houston; Friday, 8:10 p.m. EDT

PITCHING PROBABLES: Guardians: Tanner Bibee (2-7, 3.96 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 71 strikeouts); Astros: Tatsuya Imai (3-3, 6.43 ERA, 1.51 WHIP, 37 strikeouts)

LINE: Astros -125, Guardians +103; over/under is 8 1/2 runs

BOTTOM LINE: The Houston Astros start a three-game series at home against the Cleveland Guardians on Friday.

Houston has a 35-41 record overall and an 18-20 record in home games. The Astros are 17-36 in games when they have allowed a home run.

Cleveland is 21-18 on the road and 40-35 overall. The Guardians are 17-7 in games when they did not give up a home run.

Friday's game is the fourth time these teams meet this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Christian Walker has 14 doubles, a triple, 18 home runs and 52 RBI while hitting .246 for the Astros. Yordan Alvarez is 15 for 40 with two doubles and two home runs over the past 10 games.

Steven Kwan has eight doubles, a home run and 13 RBI while hitting .213 for the Guardians. Jose Ramirez is 10 for 39 with a double and two home runs over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Astros: 5-5, .214 batting average, 4.55 ERA, outscored by 17 runs

Guardians: 4-6, .211 batting average, 4.19 ERA, outscored by 12 runs

INJURIES: Astros: Nick Allen: 10-Day IL (hamstring), Lance McCullers: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Bennett Sousa: 15-Day IL (elbow), LaMonte Wade: 10-Day IL (hamstring), Cristian Javier: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Braden Shewmake: 10-Day IL (groin), Carlos Correa: 60-Day IL (ankle), Brandon Walter: 60-Day IL (elbow), Ronel Blanco: 60-Day IL (elbow), Hayden Wesneski: 60-Day IL (elbow)

Guardians: Chase DeLauter: 10-Day IL (rib), Angel Martinez: 10-Day IL (foot), Jose Ramirez: 10-Day IL (hand), Erik Sabrowski: 15-Day IL (elbow)

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.