Following their second series loss in the past three sets, the Atlanta Braves will cap a crucial six-game road trip with a three-game series against the Houston Astros starting Friday.
Despite dropping the rubber match of their three-game set with the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday, the Braves (89-64) remain atop the National League East, owning a four-game lead plus the tiebreaker over the Philadelphia Phillies.
The Braves’ magic number to clinch the division title is five. Maintaining their cushion over the Phillies is their foremost goal.
“That’s what it comes down to: we just need to take care of our business and just try to stack wins,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said. “I’m sure (the media) will let me know when we get to clinching something, but we just need to play well and win games.”
Right-hander Tyler Mahle (6-10, 3.91 ERA) will start the series opener for Atlanta.
Mahle improved to 3-1 with a 1.25 ERA in seven starts with the Braves, allowing one run on six hits while striking out three over seven innings in a 12-2 victory over the Phillies last Saturday. Mahle has allowed two earned runs or fewer in every start since moving from the San Francisco Giants to the Braves at the trade deadline.
Mahle is 1-2 with a 3.00 ERA in four career starts against the Astros. In his previous start against Houston on May 17, 2025, Mahle allowed one run on five hits and two walks, striking out three over six innings in a 5-1 win with the Texas Rangers.
Right-hander Peter Lambert (8-9, 3.71) is scheduled to start for the Astros (77-76) on Friday.
Lambert remained winless over his last 11 starts after suffering a 3-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays last Saturday, allowing three runs on six hits with four strikeouts over six innings. Lambert is 0-4 with a 4.53 ERA since earning a 9-3 victory over the Rangers on July 11.
Lambert is 0-1 with a 2.89 ERA in three career appearances (one start) against the Braves. He logged 2 1/3 scoreless innings against Atlanta on Aug. 11, 2024, allowing two hits and one walk while striking out three in the Colorado Rockies’ 9-8 victory.
As for the Astros, their rubber match against the Kansas City Royals could have gone off the rails after rookie opener Miguel Ullola loaded the bases with no outs in the top of the first inning.
Ullola and Bryan King limited the damage to a run, but rookie right-hander Ethan Pecko was the hero of a 6-2 win. Pecko worked 5 2/3 innings to save the bullpen in advance of the big series against the Braves.
“I always talk about how good his stuff is, and when he first got up here, the command and control weren’t quite there yet,” Astros manager Joe Espada said of Pecko, who made his debut on Aug. 19. “Now you see when this kid throws strikes, he’s got weapons to get a lot of people out.”
–Field Level Media
