Detroit Tigers continue road trip against AL West leaders Houston

The Detroit Tigers just finished the first three games of a ten-game road trip in Tampa Bay, and now head to Houston to take on the Astros, who have their eyes firmly set on another American League pennant as the postseason grows near.

The Detroit Tigers helped the Tampa Bay Rays earn a couple of wins that helped them reclaim one of the American League Wild Card spots. Now, as the Tigers move on to Houston for a four-game series against the Astros, their opponents will likely be looking at this as an opportunity to strengthen their already sizable lead in the AL West with a few wins over baseball’s worst team.

Houston was off to a hot start to begin the month of August, winning nine of its first ten games. However, the Astros have lost five of their last seven, winning just one of three against the White Sox and dropping three games in a crucial four-game series with division rivals Oakland.

Astros 3B Alex Bregman has been heating up at the plate recently continuing yet another solid year in the batter’s box. The All-Star went 4-4 with three RBI on Sunday in Houston’s 4-1 win over the Athletics and is batting .440 with 12 RBI in his last seven games.

For the Detroit Tigers, runs were at a premium during the weekend series against the Rays in Tampa Bay. The two teams combined for only 12 runs, six from each team, over three games, and the Tigers’ defense showed glimpses of being able to make up for the lack of offensive run support.

Detroit’s Harold Castro ended the series on Sunday with an impressive performance, going 2-4 with three RBI including a two-run homer in the first inning. The Tigers’ lineup seems to be getting younger and younger, and it up-and-comers like Castro can keep putting up solid performances on a more consistent basis, then the future could start looking very bright.

Edwin Jackson is set to take the mound for the Tigers to open the series in Houston on Monday night. Jackson has had a couple of solid outings since making his return to the Tigers surrendering just one earned run to the Royals in his first start in 2019 for Detroit and gave up two runs on four hits to Seattle in his most recent start.

Going against Jackson on the hill Monday night for Houston is Wade Miley. Miley has incredibly consistent so far during his first year in Houston, with a 3.11 ERA and allowing three or fewer earned runs in all but two of his 25 starts this season. Detroit will get the chance to face former Tiger Justin Verlander during the third game of the series on Wednesday night.

The Detroit Tigers and Houston Astros have very different goals to close out the regular season. For the Tigers, the goal is to keep getting the young guys experience and helping them improve along the way, while the Astros are pushing toward the postseason in hopes of claiming their second World Series title in three years. While facing Detroit gives Houston the chance for a few wins, all Tigers fans should be asking for is some more impressive performances from the guys who could make up the future fabric of the team.