Athletics aim to stop slide in game against the Astros

Oakland Athletics (19-26, third in the AL West) vs. Houston Astros (18-25, fourth in the AL West)

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

PITCHING PROBABLES: Athletics: Joey Estes (1-0, 1.80 ERA, 0.40 WHIP, five strikeouts); Astros: Cristian Javier (2-1, 4.01 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, 18 strikeouts)

: LINE Astros -216, Athletics +178; over/under is 8 1/2 runs

BOTTOM LINE: The Oakland Athletics enter the matchup with the Houston Astros as losers of four games in a row.

Houston has an 18-25 record overall and a 10-12 record in home games. The Astros are 7-21 in games when they have given up at least one home run.

Oakland is 19-26 overall and 9-13 on the road. The Athletics have hit 55 total home runs to rank fourth in the majors.

Thursday's game is the fourth time these teams match up this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Kyle Tucker has 10 doubles and 13 home runs while hitting .279 for the Astros. Alex Bregman is 11-for-39 with three doubles and three home runs over the last 10 games.

Brent Rooker leads the Athletics with 10 home runs while slugging .602. Abraham Toro is 15-for-45 with three doubles, a home run and four RBI over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Astros: 6-4, .266 batting average, 4.40 ERA, outscored opponents by two runs

Athletics: 2-8, .235 batting average, 5.33 ERA, outscored by 20 runs

INJURIES: Astros: Chas McCormick: 10-Day IL (hamstring), Oliver Ortega: 60-Day IL (elbow), Bennett Sousa: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Penn Murfee: 60-Day IL (elbow), Luis Garcia: 60-Day IL (elbow), Lance McCullers Jr.: 60-Day IL (elbow), Jose Urquidy: 15-Day IL (forearm), Kendall Graveman: 60-Day IL (elbow)

Athletics: Darell Hernaiz: 60-Day IL (ankle), Alex Wood: 15-Day IL (rotator cuff), Paul Blackburn: 15-Day IL (foot), Joseph Boyle: 15-Day IL (back), Freddy Tarnok: 60-Day IL (hip), Luis Medina: 60-Day IL (knee), Sean Newcomb: 60-Day IL (knee), Aledmys Diaz: 60-Day IL (calf), Miguel Andujar: 10-Day IL (knee), Ken Waldichuk: 60-Day IL (elbow), Scott Alexander: 15-Day IL (rib), Trevor Gott: 60-Day IL (elbow)

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