Greinke expected to start as Houston hosts Los Angeles

Los Angeles Angels (9-8, third in the AL West) vs. Houston Astros (8-10, fifth in the AL West)

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

PITCHING PROBABLES: Angels: Andrew Heaney (1-1, 5.65 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 19 strikeouts) Astros: Zack Greinke (2-1, 2.81 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, 16 strikeouts)

LINE: Astros -140, Angels +122; over/under is 8 runs

BOTTOM LINE: Mike Trout and the Angels will take on the Astros Friday.

The Astros are 8-5 against AL West opponents. Houston ranks sixth in the league in hitting with a .249 batting average, Alex Bregman leads the team with an average of .326.

The Angels are 2-4 in division games. Los Angeles has slugged .434, good for second in the majors. Mike Trout leads the club with a .804 slugging percentage, including 11 extra-base hits and six home runs.

The Astros won the last meeting 8-2. Cristian Javier earned his second victory and Carlos Correa went 2-for-5 with two RBI for Houston. Alex Cobb took his first loss for Los Angeles.

TOP PERFORMERS: Kyle Tucker leads the Astros with 11 RBI and is batting .174.

Shohei Ohtani ranks second on the Angels with nine extra base hits and is batting .270.

LAST 10 GAMES: Astros: 2-8, .220 batting average, 5.65 ERA, outscored by 22 runs

Angels: 4-6, .271 batting average, 5.02 ERA, outscored by seven runs

INJURIES: Astros: Justin Verlander: (elbow), Framber Valdez: (finger), Blake Taylor: (ankle), Andre Scrubb: (shoulder), Austin Pruitt: (elbow), Enoli Paredes: (right side), Josh James: (hip), Pedro Baez: (right shoulder), Jose Altuve: (health and safety protocols).

Angels: Felix Pena: (right hamstring), Luke Bard: (hip), Mike Trout: (elbow), Juan Lagares: (calf), Dexter Fowler: (knee), Anthony Rendon: (left groin), Franklin Barreto: (right elbow), Max Stassi: (thumb).

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