Series preview: Astros blast into town

Houston Astros (78-55) vs. San Diego Padres (71-63), September 3-5, 2021

Location: Petco Park, San Diego, CA

TV: Bally Sports San Diego

Radio: KWFN, XEMO

Astros SB Nation Site: The Crawfish Boxes

The Astros come to town for a crucial three-game set in San Diego for both clubs as they jockey for postseason positioning.

Here’s a look at what we can expect this weekend:

Projected Starters

Friday, 7:10 p.m. PST

Jose Urquidy (6-3, 3.38 ERA) vs. Jake Arrieta (5-12, 7.13 ERA)

Saturday, 5:40 p.m. PST

Framber Valdez (9-4, 2.91 ERA) vs. Joe Musgrove (9-8, 2.85 ERA)

Sunday, 1:10 p.m. PST

Luis Garcia (10-6, 3.23 ERA) vs. Chris Paddack (7-6, 4.98 ERA)

Projected Lineups

Astros

1. Jose Altuve (2B)
2. Michael Brantley (RF)
3. Carlos Correa (SS)
4. Yordan Alvarez (LF)
5. Yuli Gurriel (1B)
6. Alex Bregman (3B)
7. Kyle Tucker (CF)
8. Martin Maldonado (C)
9. Starting Pitcher

Padres

1. Trent Grisham (CF)
2. Fernando Tatis Jr. (RF)
3. Manny Machado (3B)
4. Jake Cronenworth (SS)
5. Austin Nola (C)
6. Eric Hosmer (1B)
7. Wil Myers (LF)
8. Adam Frazier (2B)
9. Starting Pitcher

With the razor-thin margin between the Padres and Cincinnati Reds for the final National League Wild Card spot, every game becomes that much more important.

And this weekend brings no easy test with the Houston Astros coming to town.

The Astros have made each of the past four American League Championship Series and could very well make it five consecutive appearances this October.

The weekend will be won on the mound as the Astros, but the Houston bats are due after being shut out in consecutive games against the Seattle Mariners earlier this week. They will be hungry and ready to pounce on Jake Arrieta, Joe Musgrove and Chris Paddack.

If the Padres can match the energy, we’ll be in for a good series this weekend.