The Houston Astros and Tampa Bay Rays have help on the way, but one of the clubs needs it more than the other. Houston, after recording a 3-2 victory over Tampa Bay on Tuesday, will seek a three-game series sweep on Wednesday in St. Petersburg, Fla.
The Astros used solo homers from Alex Bregman and Jeremy Pena, plus strong pitching from Yusei Kikuchi, to increase their American League West lead to 1 1/2 games over the Seattle Mariners and stretch their majors-best active winning streak to seven games. Houston has bashed its way to a 7-1 mark on a nine-game road trip, with Bregman, Yordan Alvarez and Yainer Diaz leading the charge. Bregman has homered in four consecutive games and is 16-for-37 (.
432) with eight RBIs during an eight-game hitting streak. "He's just found his groove, his swing is right," Houston manager Joe Espada said of Bregman. "He has a level of confidence he never lacks, but right now he's putting (together) some good swings.
" Rays manager Kevin Cash said after the series opener that the timing of the Astros' arrival on Florida's Gulf Coast was not advantageous. That played out again on Tuesday. "They went into their last series (in Boston) and everybody got hot," said Cash, whose club dipped below .
500 for the first time since July 19. "Bregman seems like he's doubled his production from just the week that we saw him, so it was probably just a matter of time and we're catching them at a bad time." Houston might not need the help right now, but the Space Cit.