Today at 2:10 p.m. ET, the Oakland Athletics (66-40) and Houston Astros (43-64) take the field at Minute Maid Park in Houston for the rubber match of their three-game set. The game can be live streamed for free here. Houston fans can hear all of the action on KBME 790 while Oakland fans can do the same on 97.5 The Game.
Oakland closes out a six-game homestand that it is currently 3-2 on while Houston continues a 10-game homestand it is 1-4 on thus far. The Astros won the series opener on Monday by a 7-3 margin while the Athletics bounced back with a 7-4 triumph on Tuesday. Oakland took two of three from the Astros last week at the O.co Coliseum.
The Athletics enter play atop the American League West with a 2.5 game lead on the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim while the Astros are in fourth place in the division, 23.5 games behind their opponents.
Jason Hammel (0-3, 7.11 ERA with Oakland; 8-8, 3.41 ERA overall) toes the rubber for Oakland while the Astros counter with Dallas Keuchel, who is 9-7 with a 3.11 ERA.
Keuchel had some problems on the hill earlier this month, but he feels like he's back to normal.
"It's taken a few starts for me to get back on track," Keuchel said via MLB.com. "That's a big part of my throwing mechanics. I think it was just a combination of the wrist getting back to normal and me getting over the fatigue hump, midseason fatigue."
Hammel, meanwhile, is hoping to earn his first win as he's been roughed up since being traded to the Athletics from the Chicago Cubs.
"It comes down to execution," Hammel told MLB.com. "I haven't executed the pitches"
Hammels will look to stop a Houston lineup that is anchored by Jose Altuve, who leads the team with a .343 batting average and Chris Carter, who has launched a team-best 21 homers.
The Athletics counter with a lineup that is flanked by Josh Donaldson, who has a team-high 75 RBI and Brandon Moss, who has sent a team-best 23 long balls over the fence.
Two AL West rivals close out their series when the Athletics and Astros take the field this afternoon at Minute Maid Park in Houston.
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