Houston Astros vs. New York Yankees 6/21/19: Starting Lineups, Matchup Preview, Betting Odds

TV/Radio Section

Houston Astros vs. New York Yankees, 6/21/19 7:05 PM ET Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY
TV: Astros (ATT SportsNet-SW), Yankees (WPIX, MLBN)
Radio: Astros (KBME 790 AM/94.5 FM HD-2, La Ranchera 850 AM), Yankees (WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280)

Matchup Preview

The New York Yankees have been on a roll lately, besting the Houston Astros at home Thursday night with a final score of 10-6. New York has certainly lived up to their nickname as the Bronx Bombers launched four homers last night. Tonight, the Astros will hope to stop the Yankees momentum as they send out Brad Peacock (6-4) to face off against the Yankees’ James Paxton (4-3).

The Astros, despite going 4-6 over their last ten, still hold a 7.5 game lead atop the AL West. Their +95 run differential ranks third across the league as they are hoping to increase their divisional lead. With Jose Altuve back in the lineup and rookie Yordan Alvarez lighting it up in the DH spot, the Astros look primed for another deep playoff run. Yesterday, Alvarez hit his 5th home run in his young career while Alex Bregman, Michael Brantley, and Jose Altuve each secured a hit.

Meanwhile, the Yankees are 7-3 over their past ten and hold one of the best home records in baseball at 26-13. Last night, Framber Valdez was roughed up for 5 runs and failed to make it past the fourth inning. Gary Sanchez, DJ Lemaiheu, Gleyber Torres, and newly acquired Edwin Encarnancion all homered last night en route to New York’s 47th win.

Astros Starting Lineup

1. Alex Bregman (R) 3B
2. Michael Brantley (L) LF
3. Jose Altuve (R) 2B
4. Yuli Gurriel (R) 1B
5. Yordan Alvarez (L) DH
6. Robinson Chirinos (R) C
7. Josh Reddick (L) RF
8. Jack Mayfield (R) SS
9. Jake Marisnick (R) CF

Astros Analysis

The Astros are one of the best all around teams in the MLB as they’re beginning to get back to full strength. With Bregman, Brantley, Altuve, and Alvarez forming the first four batters, Houston is able to boast one of the best lineups even without the injured Carlos Correa. As a team, the Astros rank 4th in home runs and average. On the pitching side, they’re 4th in ERA and 2nd in strikeouts.

Once a divisional foe with the Mariners, the Astros have seen plenty of Paxton throughout the years. Against him, Jose Altuve has found great success with a .321 average and 2 homers off Paxton. Even more successful is offseason acquisition Michael Brantley who has gone 4 for 9 with an RBI. In extended at-bats, Alex Bregman has gone .280, Jake Marisnick .316, and Yuli Gurriel ,174. The top of the lineup will likely be very explosive against Paxton and will depend on the rest of it to knock them in.

Starter Brad Peacock holds a 3.67 ERA and 1.118 WHIP after transitioning from the bullpen to the rotation this season. His strikeout rate sits at 9.0, which is down from the time he was a reliever. Over his past eight starts, Peacock has been especially sharp with a 2.58 ERA and over a strikeout per inning. His last two starts have been rough, going only 11 ⅓ against the Milwaukee Brewers and Toronto Blue Jays while giving up 8 runs.

Yankees Starting Lineup

1. DJ LeMahieu (R) 2B
2. Aaron Judge (R) RF
3. Luke Voit (R) 1B
4. Gary Sanchez (R) C
5. Giancarlo Stanton (R) LF
6. Edwin Encarnancion (R) DH
7. Didi Gregorious (L) SS
8. Gleyber Torres (R) 2B
9. Aaron Hicks (S) CF

Yankees Analysis

With the recent return of Giancarlo Stanton and soon to be back Aaron Judge, the Yankees could have the best lineup across the entire league. Though mainly from the right hand side, almost every hitter in the lineup has the potential to be a 25-30 home run hitter and multiple guys who could hit over 40. However, their pitching isn’t as good as the Astros though that’s surely a problem they’ll look to address before the trade deadline.

Against the former reliever Peacock, the Yankees haven’t had much experience or success against him. Each of Edwin Encarnancion, Brett Gardner, Didi Gregorious, and DJ Lemaiheu have yet to secure a hit against him. This year, Peacock has fared significantly better against righties, limiting them to a .156 batting average whereas lefties have hit .277. In a lineup with so many righties, it’ll be interesting to see which of the usual Yankees will have to sit.

James Paxton has found success since coming over from Seattle though there have also been some rough patches. He’s already landed on the injured list this season and his past few starts have shown mixed results. Last time out, he struck out seven and went six innings to earn his fourth win against the White Sox. In just the start before, he was hit hard against the Mets, giving up six runs in just 2 ⅔ innings and recording just one punchout. Earlier this year, Paxton gave up five runs in four innings to a much different Astros lineup.

Astros vs Yankees Betting Odds

The line is currently set at Astros +122, Yankees -122.
After their performance last night, the Yankees once again open as the favorites against the Astros. In fact, New York has been favored in their last six contests against Houston. Against Paxton, the top of the lineup will have to get it going early on with what should be a fairly right handed lineup against the southpaw. On the other side, can Paxton return to form as a consistent pitcher after injury woes earlier this year. The offense will look to keep it going as they’re managed to outscore themselves in each game of this series. The over/under is set at 9.4 runs.

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