Athletics aim to stop slide in game against Astros

Oakland Athletics (19-26, third in AL West) vs. Houston Astros (18-25, fourth in 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 game against the Houston Astros as losers of four straight games.

Houston is 18-25 overall and 10-12 in home games. The Astros are 7-21 in games when they have allowed at least one home run.

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

Thursday’s game is the fourth time these teams have met this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Kyle Tucker has 10 doubles and 13 homers 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 hitting .602. Abraham Toro is 15-for-45 with three doubles, a home run and four RBIs over the last 10 games.

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

Athletics: 2-8, .235 batting average, 5.33 ERA, led 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.