Astros aim to keep win streak going against the Nationals
Houston Astros (22-11, first in the AL West) vs. Washington Nationals (11-23, fifth in the NL East)
Washington; Saturday, 7:05 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Astros: Cristian Javier (2-0, .83 ERA, .79 WHIP, 25 strikeouts); Nationals: Erick Fedde (2-2, 3.90 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, 26 strikeouts)
LINE: Astros -168, Nationals +145; over/under is 9 runs
BOTTOM LINE: The Houston Astros will attempt to keep their 11-game win streak alive when they visit the Washington Nationals.
Washington has gone 4-14 in home games and 11-23 overall. The Nationals have a 7-14 record in games when they have allowed a home run.
Houston has a 9-4 record at home and a 22-11 record overall. The Astros have an 11-0 record in games when they scored at least five runs.
Saturday's game is the second time these teams square off this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Josh Bell has a .342 batting average to rank second on the Nationals, and has seven doubles and four home runs. Cesar Hernandez is 12-for-42 with two RBI over the past 10 games.
Yordan Alvarez leads the Astros with a .280 batting average, and has three doubles, 11 home runs, 17 walks and 21 RBI. Jose Altuve is 13-for-37 with five home runs and seven RBI over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Nationals: 3-7, .279 batting average, 4.19 ERA, outscored by two runs
Astros: 10-0, .241 batting average, 1.00 ERA, outscored opponents by 40 runs
INJURIES: Nationals: Aaron Sanchez: day-to-day (hand), Mason Thompson: 60-Day IL (biceps), Sean Doolittle: 60-Day IL (elbow), Anibal Sanchez: 60-Day IL (neck), Ehire Adrianza: 60-Day IL (quadricep), Hunter Harvey: 10-Day IL (pronator), Will Harris: 60-Day IL (pectoral), Seth Romero: 60-Day IL (calf), Stephen Strasburg: 10-Day IL (shoulder/neck), Carter Kieboom: 60-Day IL (right forearm), Joe Ross: 60-Day IL (elbow)
Astros: Jeremy Pena: day-to-day (knee), Taylor Jones: 60-Day IL (back), Lance McCullers Jr.: 60-Day IL (forearm), Jacob Meyers: 10-Day IL (shoulder)
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
