​Tonight’s game features the Houston Astros (46-48) and the Washington Nationals (47-46), two clubs who share their Spring Training complex in West Palm Beach, Florida. They’ll wrap up their three-game set with a rubber match in Washington, D.C. RHP Spencer Arrighetti (7-4, 3.81 ERA), who is tied for the team lead with seven wins, will make his final first-half start for Houston, facing LHP Foster Griffin (9-2, 2.87 ERA) of the Nationals.
Spencer’s gifts: Arrighetti has been difficult to solve this season, ranking high in several categories as he enters tonight’s start. He sits fourth in the American League in hits allowed per nine innings (6.69) and seventh in opponent batting average (.208, 58-for-279), with a minimum of 75 innings pitched. Coming off a solid outing against Tampa Bay (one earned run in six innings), Arrighetti is hoping to recapture the strong May form that earned him AL Pitcher of the Month honors after going 4-1 with a 0.93 ERA (3 earned runs in 29 innings) across five starts.
Spinning records: The Astros are 46-48, two games under .500 for the fourth time in the last 10 days. A win tonight would push them to just one game under .500, a threshold they haven’t reached since they stood at 6-7 on April 8.
The slow turnaround: After a slow start, Houston has surged to a 26-17 record since May 21, the best mark in the AL in that span. On May 21, they were 20-31, their low point of the year.
Winning percentage since May 21 (AL): 1) Astros 26-17 (.605) 2) Mariners 23-18 (.561) 3) White Sox 22-19 (.537)
Series-ly speaking: Houston has won six of their last seven series and can improve that with a win tonight in D.C. They’ve also claimed four of their last five road series. On the road this season, they’re 22-15 since an early-season 1-9 road trip, and they sit 23-24 away from home on the season; a victory tonight would bring their road mark to an even .500.
Road to the finish on close calls: The Astros are 9-6 in one-run games and 21-11 in games decided by two runs or fewer. Before last night’s three-run win, nine straight wins and 14 of their previous 15 victories had come by two or fewer runs.
Getting on the board early: Both teams are among the league leaders in first-inning production. Houston leads the American League in first-inning runs with 64, while Washington tops the National League with 70. Overall, Houston ranks third in the AL in runs scored (430), while Washington leads Major League Baseball with 500 runs on the season.
Last night’s win: Houston evened the series with a 6-3 victory in Washington. The bottom of the Astros’ order did the heavy lifting, with Nick Allen (1-for-12, 3 RBIs) and Christian Vázquez (1-for-3, 2 RBIs) delivering five of Houston’s RBIs. The bullpen worked 5.1 innings of one-run ball to secure the victory.
All-Star Alvarez: DH Yordan Álvarez has been a standout presence for Houston, delivering big at-bats and contributing to the lineup’s balance and power.