The Seattle Mariners (92-73, 82-79 RL, 76-77-7 O/U) look to even the series when they battle the Houston Astros (107-56, 85-77 RL, 62-92-8 O/U) in game two of the ALDS on Thursday afternoon from Minute Maid Park. The Mariners will have Luis Castillo on the hill. The Astros will counter with Framber Valdez. Houston went 12-7 against the Mariners in the regular season and it was the Astros rallying in the ninth for a wild 8-7 win on Tuesday night.
The Mariners send Luis Castillo to the mound. Castillo was brilliant in his Wildcard start against the Blue Jays, completing 7.1 shutout innings, and walked zero batters. The veteran was acquired from the Reds in August and the trade has paid big dividends. The right-hander posted a stellar 2.99 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP accompanied by an 8-6 record in 150.1 innings of work this season. He logged a 3.90 ERA in September. Castillo did not pitch against Houston this season and held them to only two runs in six innings in his lone career meeting.
Seattle's postseason success has been fuelled by the bats. During the regular season, the offense was actually at or below average in many categories but is feasting at the dish now. They went 5 for 9 with RISP in game one and are hitting a dazzling .405 with RISP in three postseason games.
Julio Rodriguez had a big performance in game one, clubbing a two-run double against Verlander and also hit a triple. The 21-year-old star center fielder now has three hits and two RBIs in three postseason games. He is 0 for 3 in his career against Valdez. Ty France was quiet in the Wildcard series but collected three base hits in game one. The 28-year-old was fantastic against the Astros in the regular season, hitting .338 along with a strong .928 OPS.
The Mariners are posting an average of 4.26 runs per game, tabbing them 18th. The pitching staff has filed a 3.59 team ERA, positioning them eighth in the big leagues.