Houston takes 3-game losing streak into matchup with Oakland

Houston Astros (78-44, first in the AL West) vs. Oakland Athletics (69-52, second in the AL West)

Oakland, California; Friday, 10 p.m. EDT

PITCHING PROBABLES: Astros: Justin Verlander (15-4, 2.82 ERA) Athletics: Tanner Roark (7-8, 4.06 ERA)

BOTTOM LINE: Houston enters the game as losers of their last three games.

The Athletics are 28-26 against teams from the AL West. Oakland has hit 193 home runs this season, sixth in the league. Matt Chapman leads the team with 29, averaging one every 15.2 at-bats.

The Astros are 38-13 against opponents from the AL West. The Houston pitching staff as a whole has an ERA of 3.78. Gerrit Cole leads the team with a 2.87 earned run average. The Athletics won the last meeting 7-6. Jake Diekman secured his first victory and Matt Olson went 2-for-4 with two home runs and four RBIs for Oakland. Chris Devenski took his second loss for Houston.

TOP PERFORMERS: Chapman leads the Athletics with 60 extra base hits and is slugging .533. Olson is 11-for-38 with a double, three home runs and 11 RBIs over the last 10 games for Oakland.

Yuli Gurriel leads the Astros with 84 RBIs and is batting .302. Michael Brantley has 16 hits and is batting .485 over the last 10 games for Houston.

LAST 10 GAMES: Athletics: 6-4, .249 batting average, 3.98 ERA, outscored opponents by 11 runs

Astros: 6-4, .304 batting average, 4.36 ERA, outscored opponents by 35 runs

Athletics Injuries: Sean Manaea: (shoulder), Daniel Gossett: (elbow), Marco Estrada: (lumbar strain), Ramon Laureano: (hip), Mark Canha: (hand), Josh Phegley: (thumb).

Astros Injuries: Brad Peacock: (shoulder), Lance McCullers Jr.: (elbow), Josh James: (shoulder), Gerrit Cole: (hamstring).

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