Four Things to Watch in Astros Series Against the Mariners

Every year it seems remarkable that despite every team playing 162 game, inevitably, there are at least one or two division races that come down to the final week of the season. That is the case for the Astros and Mariners who play their last regular season series at Daikin Park this weekend.

After a sweep of the Rangers, the Astros all but sealed the fate of their Texas rivals, no only winning the Silver Boot, but likely pushing Arlington Dallas Texas out of the division race and possibly the postseason.

This week lined up to be the most pivotal of the season and the Astros did what they needed to against the Rangers. Now, Seattle comes to town having just lost their first game after nine in a row, tied with the home team they are about to play in their home building, while sporting the best home run hitter in baseball — possibly the AL MVP. It’s going to be a barn burner.

Here are some things to watch.

Pitching vs. Pitching

The Astros, despite the unrelenting injury issues, are still one of the best pitching squads in baseball. They lead the majors in strikeouts and are top five in WHIP and top 10 in team ERA. Seattle is among the better team pitching staffs in the American League. With the day off on Thursday, the Astros lineup their three best pitchers for the series: Hunter Brown (an AL Cy Young contender), Framber Valdez, and Jason Alexander. The Astros will most certainly see Bryan Woo and could see Logan Gilbert on Sunday, but will miss Luis Castillo who pitched Thursday in Kansas City.

Astros Run Production

The Mariners are 10th in baseball in runs while the Astros are 21st. In the last 10 games, the Astros have improved, but Seattle has been the best in the entire league. Finding ways to get runners across the plate has been a struggle for Houston all season. It won’t get any easier against the Mariners pitching. With games likely to be close and decided by small mistakes, the key will be how well the Astros hit with runners in scoring position, something they have steadily improved on throughout the year.

The Long Ball Difference

Seattle is third in baseball in home runs. When you have two players with 30-plus homers (one with 56), it is no shock that you are near the top in that stat. The Astros have two with more than 20 and a couple more who will probably get to 20 by the end of the season, but they aren’t in the class of the Mariners who have seven double-digit home run hitters. Both teams are susceptible to giving up the long ball, however, and in the confines of Daikin Park, that can mean a lot.

Will Isaac Paredes return?

When Yordan Alvarez sprained his ankle (even though the team got some decent news on that front Wednesday), rookie Zach Cole vaulted his way into Astros rookie lore with some dynamic swings at the plate. But another boost might come from Paredes who it was assumed would miss the rest of the season with a bad hamstring injury. Instead, he is likely to be back in the lineup at DH for a team that sorely needs his run production and, maybe more importantly, his ability to draw long plate appearances against opposing pitching.