Athletics head into matchup against the Astros on losing streak

Oakland Athletics (41-73, fifth in the AL West) vs. Houston Astros (74-41, first in the AL West)

Houston; Sunday, 2:10 p.m. EDT

PITCHING PROBABLES: Athletics: Cole Irvin (6-9, 2.92 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 84 strikeouts); Astros: Cristian Javier (6-8, 3.14 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 132 strikeouts)

LINE: Astros -270, Athletics +219; over/under is 8 runs

BOTTOM LINE: The Oakland Athletics aim to stop a seven-game slide with a win over the Houston Astros.

Houston is 74-41 overall and 38-18 at home. The Astros are 44-16 in games when they record at least eight hits.

Oakland is 41-73 overall and 24-34 on the road. The Athletics have a 27-10 record in games when they out-hit their opponents.

The teams meet Sunday for the 15th time this season. The Astros lead the season series 8-6.

TOP PERFORMERS: Yordan Alvarez has 31 home runs, 59 walks and 74 RBI while hitting .298 for the Astros. Alex Bregman is 13-for-33 with a double, two home runs and six RBI over the last 10 games.

Seth Brown leads Oakland with 17 home runs while slugging .450. Sean Murphy is 11-for-37 with a home run and seven RBI over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Astros: 7-3, .278 batting average, 2.93 ERA, outscored opponents by 25 runs

Athletics: 2-8, .218 batting average, 4.60 ERA, outscored by 21 runs

INJURIES: Astros: Michael Brantley: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Ryan Pressly: day-to-day (neck), Jason Castro: 60-Day IL (knee), Blake Taylor: 60-Day IL (elbow), Josh James: 60-Day IL (lat)

Athletics: Paul Blackburn: 15-Day IL (finger), Daulton Jefferies: 60-Day IL (arm), Deolis Guerra: 60-Day IL (elbow), Brent Honeywell Jr.: 60-Day IL (elbow)

------

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.