Inside the Astros

Astros' Starting Lineup, Pitcher for Saturday's Game Against Arizona Diamondbacks

The Astros have a chance to clinch a postseason berth with a win Saturday over the Diamondbacks. Here's how Dusty Baker's club will line up.

Jack Vita

Astros' Starting Lineup, Pitcher for Saturday's Game Against Arizona Diamondbacks
Astros' Starting Lineup, Pitcher for Saturday's Game Against Arizona Diamondbacks /
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The Houston Astros enter a critical game Saturday in Arizona, with their playoff hopes on the line.

Manager Dusty Baker will turn to Justin Verlander (12-8, 3.32 ERA) in game two of their three-game series at Chase Field, against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Houston enters Saturday with an 88-72 record, one game back of the Texas Rangers for the American League West division lead. Houston currently owns the third and final American League Wild Card, with a one game lead over the Seattle Mariners. The Mariners and Rangers are currently halfway through a four-game series in Seattle, in which the M's took the first two games. If the Astros and Mariners win Saturday, Houston and Texas will be tied for the AL West lead, with only a day remaining in the regular season. Since the Astros won nine of their 13 games against the Rangers in 2023, they own the head-to-head tiebreaker, and would win the division outright if the teams tied.

The Astros can clinch a playoff spot with a win on Saturday. Similarly, the Diamondbacks are also fighting for their own reservation in the postseason. If Arizona wins Saturday, it will clinch a playoff berth. The Diamondbacks have not appeared in the playoffs since 2017.

The Astros posted their starting lineup for Saturday's contest on Twitter. Here's a look at how they will line up for their second-to-last game of the regular season:

1) 2B Jose Altuve

2) 3B Alex Bregman

3) DH Yordan Alvarez

4) RF Kyle Tucker

5) 1B Jose Abreu

6) LF Chas McCormick

7) CF Mauricio Dubon

8) SS Jeremy Pena

9) C Martin Maldonado

SP Justin Verlander

Merrill Kelly (12-7, 3.38 ERA) will start for the Diamondbacks. First pitch is scheduled for 8:10 p.m. ET.

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Jack Vita
JACK VITA

Jack Vita is a writer and contributor to Sports Illustrated's Inside the Astros, and host of the Jack Vita Show, a popular sports podcast available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube and wherever podcasts are found. Jack is a 2017 graduate of Valparaiso University, in northwest Indiana. Since completing his degree, Jack has created his own independent sports media outlet (JackVita.com) and podcast (the Jack Vita Show). He has featured prominent guests from the worlds of sports and entertainment including Brian Urlacher, Scot Pollard, Bob Nightengale, Dan O'Dowd, and Survivor icons Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick, Cirie Fields, Danni Boatwright and "the Dragon Slayer", Coach Benjamin Wade. While studying at Valparaiso, Jack was the school newspaper's beat writer for the Valpo Crusaders men's basketball team, which won three straight Horizon League championships from 2015-2017. Traveling to cover the team, Jack had a front row seat to one of the nation's best mid-major teams, headlined by future NBA Draft pick Alec Peters and coached by NCAA Tournament hero Bryce Drew. Jack hosted a weekly sports radio show and provided play-by-play and color commentary services for ESPN 3 and the university's student radio station, WVUR-FM, 95.1 The Source, covering Valparaiso men's soccer, women's basketball, softball and volleyball. Jack also covered these sports, in addition to men's and women's tennis, baseball and women's soccer for the school newspaper, The Torch. While he was in college, Jack interned for and co-hosted Jewell On Sports, a sports radio program on AM 1050 WLIP in Kenosha, Wisconsin. There, he interviewed various pro athletes such as Ahman Green, Javon Walker and Javier Arenas, in addition to talking sports with the late, great Brad Jewell. Jack also interned for 22nd Century Media, a now defunct newspaper corporation that provided news to the North Shore of Chicago. With 22nd Century Media, Jack wrote post-game recaps, feature stories about local athletes, reviews of local restaurants and compiled the newspaper's "Pet of the Week" and "Athlete of the Week" sections, while providing copy-editing services. Before attending Valparaiso, Jack enrolled at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin, where he studied for two years before transferring. He is a high school graduate of New Trier Township High School in Winnetka, Illinois. You can follow Jack on Twitter @JackVitaShow, subscribe to his podcast, the Jack Vita Show, wherever podcasts are found, and reach him via email at jack@jackvita.com.

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