The Houston Astros and Oakland Athletics will play Sunday at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. First pitch is scheduled for 1:07 p.m. PT.
Houston (54-43 SU and 50-47 RL) is starting righty Hunter Brown. The 24-year-old is 6-7 with a 4.26 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP in 18 outings this season.
Oakland (27-72 SU and 47-52 RL) is countering with right-hander Luis Medina. The 24-year-old is 3-7 with a 5.79 ERA and a 1.53 WHIP in 13 appearances (9 starts).
Houston is 4-1 in its last five, taking care of its business against Colorado and Oakland. It's still three games behind Texas in the AL West, as the Rangers have won six of their last seven.
The Astros average 4.70 runs (12th) and hit .249 (17th) with a .729 OPS (14th). They've hit 121 home runs (11th) and stolen 71 bases (14th) in 2023. The pitching staff sports a 3.74 ERA (2nd) and a 1.25 WHIP (11th) with 45 quality starts (5th).
Kyle Tucker home run hat trick. pic.twitter.com/2qZz7t0O3G
— Houston Astros (@astros) July 22, 2023
Brown has lost three straight outings. In his last start, he surrendered four runs and six hits, including two home runs, in 5.1 innings vs. Colorado. He gave up eight runs and 18 combined hits in his previous two outings (7.0 IP) against Texas and Seattle. Brown has a 118:33 K:BB ratio in his second big league season.