The Astros will open up a three-game series tonight/early tomorrow morning against the Seattle Mariners. All three games have a 9:10pm Central start. RIP immune system.
Houston won the 2015 season series against Seattle, 12-7, and the Astros went 5-4 at Safeco Field. The Astros are 30-28 against the Mariners since moving to the American League West.
2010 1st Round pick (43rd overall) Taijuan Walker will get the start for the Mariners. He is 1-0 this season in three starts, throwing 18IP, 15H/4R (3ER), with 14K:2BB. This translates to a 1.50 ERA/0.94 WHIP. He has thrown a quality start in each of his appearances in 2016 and is coming off a 6IP, 3H/0ER, 6K:0BB outing at Cleveland.
He made four starts against the Astros in 2015, throwing a total of 21.1IP, 23H/14ER, with 24K:8BB. Most of that damage was done on May 2, when Walker was chased after 3IP in which he allowed 9H/7ER, 2K:1BB.
Current Astros are hitting a combined .273/.327/.545 against Walker. Colby Rasmus leads the way, hitting .500/.500/1.000 with three extra-base hits in ten plate appearances. Jose Altuve is 6x19 with a .929 OPS; Evan Gattis is 3x11 with two homers off of Walker; George Springer is 3x9 with a 1.030 OPS. Luis Valbuena is 2x7 with a homer. Carlos Correa is 1x5 with a walk.
Jason Castro may get the night off, going 1x13 with 9 strikeouts against Walker.
Doug Fister gets the nod for the Astros, facing the team what drafted and signed him back in 2006. On July 30, 2011 the Mariners traded him and David Pauley to Detroit for Francisco Martinez, Charlie Furbush, Casper Wells, and Chance Ruffin.
Fister is coming off the longest outing of his Astros career - he lasted 6IP, 5H/2ER, 1K:2BB at Arlington last week in one of the few bright starts of the Astros' rotation in this young season. So far in 2016 Fiers has thrown 16.2IP, allowing 19H/11ER, 9K:4BB and - telling - three home runs. Those home runs have accounted for four of Fister's eleven earned runs on the season and brought in the only two runs the Rangers scored in last Wednesday night's 2-1 Rangers win.
With runners in scoring position, opponents are hitting .350 with a .650 SLG. With two outs and RISP, Fister is allowing a 1.222 OPS, and he's allowed a .333/.333/.583 line in the 1st inning of games.
Of course it's only three starts. Maybe it'll be fine. Maybe this is just a reminder that we all die.
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
