Critical elements that could decide Game 2 of Astros-Tigers Wild Card Series

GAME 2 PREVIEW

Astros Hunter Brown
Hunter Brown will start Game 2 for Houston. Photo by Logan Riely/Getty Images.

Detroit Tigers (86-76) at Houston Astros (88-73)

  • Location: Houston, Minute Maid Park
  • Date: Wednesday, 2:32 p.m. EDT

Pitching Matchup:

  • Tigers: Tyler Holton (7-2, 2.19 ERA, 0.78 WHIP, 77 strikeouts)
  • Astros: Hunter Brown (11-9, 3.49 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 179 strikeouts)

The Detroit Tigers and Houston Astros face off in Game 2 of their AL Wild Card Series, with Detroit leading 1-0 in the best-of-three set. The Tigers can advance to the ALDS with another win, while the Astros will be fighting to extend their postseason run.

Astros Outlook:
Houston, the reigning AL West champions, look to bounce back after dropping the series opener. The Astros have been strong at Minute Maid Park this season, posting a 46-35 home record. They’ve also excelled at keeping opponents in check, with a 38-16 record in games where they haven’t allowed a home run. Yordan Alvarez remains a key figure in the Astros’ lineup, leading the team with 35 homers, while Kyle Tucker has been hot, hitting .400 with three homers over the last 10 games.

You can see the Astros lineup for Game 2 below.

Tigers Outlook:

Detroit has been road warriors, going 43-38 away from home, and their pitching staff has been stellar, ranking third in the AL with a 3.62 ERA. Riley Greene and Kerry Carpenter have powered the Tigers’ offense, combining for 51 home runs on the season. If the Tigers’ bullpen holds strong again, they could advance to the next round.

Recent Form:

  • Astros: 6-4 over their last 10 games, hitting .278 as a team, but they have struggled with a 4.10 ERA.
  • Tigers: 7-3 in their last 10, backed by excellent pitching (3.30 ERA), though their offense has only managed a .229 average.

The Astros lead the season series 4-3, but the Tigers carry the momentum as they look to close out the series and move forward in the playoffs.

If you would like to see some reactions to Game 1, check out the videos below.



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This was a vintage McCullers performance. Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images.

Zach Dezenzo homered and Victor Caratini drove in two runs in the seventh to help the Houston Astros rally for a 5-3 victory over the Athletics on Wednesday.

The Athletics led by 1 when rookie Justin Sterner (1-1) took over for Luis Severino to start the seventh. Dezenzo sent his fourth pitch 416 feet to center field for his second homer this season to tie it at 3-all.

There were runners on second and third with two outs in the inning when Caratini lined a single to center field to score 2 and put the Astros on top 5-3.

Houston’s Lance McCullers Jr. allowed five hits and three runs in a season-long six innings in his fifth start after missing more than two seasons with injuries.

Shawn Dubin (2-0) struck out two in a scoreless seventh for the win and Josh Hader converted his 14th save in 14 opportunities with a scoreless ninth.

Jacob Wilson homered with two RBIs for the Athletics, who fell to 3-17 in their last 20 games.

Severino yielded three hits and two runs — one earned — in six innings. He struck out four to give him 1,003 strikeouts in his career, making him the 48th active player to reach 1,000 strikeouts.

Christian Walker was hit on the hand with a pitch to start Houston’s fourth. He left in the bottom of the sixth inning because of the injury. Manager Joe Espada said the X-rays were negative after the game.

Key moment

The Astros jumping on Sterner in the seventh to take the lead after Severino’s strong start kept them in check through six.

Key stat

McCullers struck out 12 to tie a career high he last reached in 2018.

Up next

LHP Jacob Lopez (0-2, 2.57 ERA) will start for Oakland on Thursday night in the opener of a four-game series at Toronto. The Astros open a four-game series against Tampa Bay on Thursday night with RHP Ryan Gusto (3-2, 4.58) on the mound against RHP Shane Baz (4-3, 4.94).

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