Minus starters Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman and DH Yordan Alvarez, the Astros are at a bargain price against the Mariners because of those absences in a pitching matchup of Zack Greinke versus Chris Flexen. 

Greinke isn't the dominant force of years past, but he's a solid "B" tier pitcher. I consider Flexen to be an "F" tier pitcher. He gave up five earned runs in five innings against the Twins during his last start this past Sunday. Flexen sat out last season. He had a 6.59 ERA with the Mets in 2019 and a 12.79 ERA in limited innings with the Mets in 2018. 


The Astros rank in the top-five in numerous key offensive categories. They have the depth to overcome the loss of Altuve, Bregman and Alvarez especially facing such a weak starter and a bad Mariners bullpen that carries a high fatigue rating. This is Seattle's fifth game in four days. The Mariners just got into Seattle on Friday after sweeping a doubleheader from the Orioles on Thursday and then nipped the Astros in a come-from-behind victory on Friday. 

The Astros were idle this past Thursday so their bullpen is relatively fresh. Despite Friday's defeat, the Astros still have beaten the Mariners in 40 of the past 55 games.