ON DECK: ASTROS VS. TEXAS RANGERS

When/where: Friday at 7:10 p.m., Saturday at 3:05 p.m., Sunday at 1:10 p.m.; Minute Maid Park.

TV: SCHN on Friday, SCHN and FS1 on Saturday, SCHN2 on Sunday. Radio: 790 AM, 93.3 FM (Spanish), 1010 AM (Spanish).

Pitchers: Friday, RHP J.P. France (0-1, 4.76) vs. RHP Dane Dunning (1-1, 4.15); Saturday, RHP Ronel Blanco (2-0, 0.00) vs. LHP Andrew Heaney (0-2, 7.56); Sunday, RHP Cristian Javier (1-0, 1.10) vs. RHP Nathan Eovaldi (1-0, 1.45).

Astros (4-10) update: After a sweep at the hands of the Royals, Houston sits 28th in the majors with a team ERA of 5.09. … Blanco and Javier have been the saving grace of the rotation, ranking first and eighth in AL ERA. … With one hit allowed in 15 innings, Blanco is, as might be expected, leading the majors with a 0.47 WHIP. He has allowed six walks. … For the first time in his career, Jose Altuve has reached base in each of the season’s first 14 games. He’s third in the American League with a .370 batting average and fifth with an OPS of 1.100. Altuve also is tied for first in the AL doubles with six. … In 53 career games against the Rangers, Yordan Alvarez has a .305/.397/.615 slash line with 16 home runs and 41 RBIs. … Kyle Tucker is 5-for-31 (.161) over his last seven games.

Rangers (7-6) update: Texas has a half-game lead over the Angels atop the AL West. But since winning the first two games of last weekend’s four-game series against the Astros at Globe Life Field, the Rangers have lost four of five, including two to Houston and two to Oakland. … The Rangers, who didn’t get a hit off Blanco until the sixth inning Sunday, got their only hit in Thursday’s 1-0 loss to the Athletics in the seventh. … Jonah Heim’s 98 RBIs as a catcher since the start of the 2023 season are easily the most in the majors. The Dodgers’ Will Smith is next with 81. … In each game this season, Marcus Semien has had either multiple hits (seven times) or none (six times). … On Wednesday, Bruce Bochy became the 10th manager in MLB history to reach 2,100 wins. He is 25 shy of ninth-place Joe McCarthy. … First baseman Nathaniel Lowe, who hasn’t played this season because of a right oblique strain, is set to begin a rehab assignment with Class AA Fresno on Friday.