So the Astros try to prevent a three-game skid tonight when they take on Anibal Sanchez and the Miami Marlins. After having scored 31 runs in their five-game win streak, the Astros have managed one run and eleven hits in their last two games. The Marlins are 7-1 in their last eight games against the Astros.
*In his last start against the Astros, on April 15, Anibal Sanchez threw 6IP, 5H/3R (2ER), 7K:3BB, getting a no-decision in the 2nd 11-inning win over Houston that series.
*This will be Sanchez' fourth start since that game against the Astros. In his last three starts, Sanchez has thrown 21IP, 15H/5ER, 27K:5BB.
*Sanchez is getting a career-high 48.1% groundball rate, with 38.3% flyballs, and a career-low 13.6% line-drive rate.
*65.2% of his pitches (489) have been strikes (319), and he's throwing a first-pitch strike 63% of the time.
*His fastball has lost a little bit in 2012. Where it was 91.7mph in 2011, it has since dropped to 90.4mph in 2012.
*Sanchez has only given up seven extra-base hits in 2012, but five of them came with the batter ahead in the count. And two of them were doubles by Jason Castro and J.D. Martinez
*The Astros will send out Aneury Rodriguez for his first appearance of the season, and his first start since allowing 6H/6ER, 4K:1BB, 2HR in 4IP against the Braves on June 10.
*This is an extremely limited sample size, but current Marlins are 0x5 against The Aneury-sm, in seven plate appearances. Jose Reyes is 0x3 with a walk. And he hit Gaby Sanchez in his only plate appearance.
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
