masn-baseballs-orioles.jpgHOUSTON – The Orioles have arrived at Minute Maid Park to begin the second leg of a three-city road trip spanning three time zones. Tonight they play the first of three games in Houston.
Houston ended a run of six straight losing seasons in 2015, winning 86 games to finish second in the AL West and earn the second wild card. They beat the Yankees in the wild card game before losing to Kansas City in five games in the American League Division Series.
But this year, the Astros got off to a 5-12…

HOUSTON – The Orioles have arrived at Minute Maid Park to begin the second leg of a three-city road trip spanning three time zones. Tonight they play the first of three games in Houston.

Houston ended a run of six straight losing seasons in 2015, winning 86 games to finish second in the AL West and earn the second wild card. They beat the Yankees in the wild card game before losing to Kansas City in five games in the American League Division Series.

But this year, the Astros got off to a 5-12 start and have been playing catchup ever since. They bring a 17-28 record into this series and have lost four in a row. The first three losses in this stretch came by 2-1 scores.

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Since May 5, the Astros have played six straight series against teams with winning records, going 7-10. They are 10-13 at home and 3-7 versus AL East teams.

On the mound tonight, Chris Tillman (6-1, 2.61 ERA) is set to make his 10th start and face right-hander Doug Fister (4-3, 4.22 ERA), who is making his ninth.

While the Orioles are 10 games over .500 at 26-16, they are seven games over .500 in Tillman’s starts, going 8-1. Tillman has allowed just two homers over 51 2/3 innings. The right-hander has recorded six consecutive quality starts, going 5-0 with a 1.83 ERA in that span. He has allowed one run or fewer five games.

Like Tillman, Fister has also recorded six straight quality starts. He is 3-2 with a 3.29 ERA during that stretch. In three home starts, he is 1-1 with a 5.21 ERA.