Detroit Tigers vs Houston Astros Prediction & Match Preview - May 5th

The Detroit Tigers visit the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park this Thursday May 5 for the first of a four-game set between the American League squads. Houston has the upper hand entering the matchup. They're 12-11 at the time of writing, placing them second in the American League West division. The Tigers, meanwhile, are languishing to start the season. They're 7-14, tying them for last place in the American League with the Kansas City Royals.

The Detroit Tigers are in a hole. They've dropped seven of their last eight games and have won just one series in 2022. It was against Kansas City. They need to get things together before they spiral into a record they can't correct.

Match Details

Fixture: Detroit Tigers vs Houston Astros.

Date & Time: Thursday May 5, 2022, 8:10 p.m. EDT.

Venue: Minute Maid Park, Houston, Texas.

Detroit Tigers Preview

The Detroit Tigers might be the strangest combination of roster and record so far in 2022. The club's lineup consists of four hitters who are posting excellent numbers to start the season. Tucker Barnhart only has 41 at-bats, but he's hitting .317 and slugging .366. Second baseman Javier Baez has returned from a thumb injury and picked up right where he left off. He's batting .292. Austin Meadows has an OPS of .826 despite his zero home runs. Last but not least, Robbie Grossman has a .411 on-base percentage and he's hitting .288. That's a solid mix of players. So what's the problem in Detroit?

Let's keep it simple. These hitters lack power. All the hitters mentioned above combine for just two home runs, both courtesy of Javier Baez. Austin Meadows has two doubles, two triples, and 11 RBI, but no home runs. That needs to change if this offense is going to start producing more runs.

Key Player - Austin Meadows

Detroit Tigers outfielder Austin Meadows has posted solid batting totals so far, but has hit no home runs.

This 27-year-old from Atlanta, Georgia, needs to start squaring the ball up with more power. He smacked 27 home runs last season with the Tampa Bay Rays, but has failed to go yard in 69 at-bats with the Tigers. Need fans worry? Not at all. Meadows is 6'3" and weighs 225 pounds. He's built to hit dingers. He's been making good contact this season and already has two deep triples and doubles. He just needs to work on his exit velocity, the average of which is down three mph from last season.

"Tampa just handed Austin Meadows to Detroit for nothing" - @ sarge

Meadows already tied his career-best maximum exit velocity of 115.4 mph earlier this year. The Tigers need that power back. If Meadows can resurrect it against the Astros, his club stands a chance of winning.

Detroit Tigers Projected Lineup

Probable Starting Pitcher: Tyler Alexander (LHP)

Robbie Grossman (S) LF
Javier Baez (R) SS
Austin Meadows (L) RF
Miguel Cabrera (R) DH
Harold Castro (L) 1B
Jonathan Schoop (R) 2B
Jeimer Candelario (S) 3B
Tucker Barnhart (S) C
Akil Baddoo (L) CF

Houston Astros Preview

The Houston Astros aren't one of the league's best teams so far in 2022, but they've held their own. They're floating above .500 with a 12-11 record at the time of writing, good enough to tie them with the Seattle Mariners for second place in the American League West division. The Astros are currently battling the Mariners in a three-game home series. They won the first game 3-0 and hope to keep the momentum going. If they can separate themselves in the standings, they'll be home-free to chase the Los Angeles Angels for first place in the division. They're currently sitting 2 1/2 games back of the division leaders.

The Astros are still waiting for their hitters to reach maximum potency this year. Jose Altuve has just returned from a hamstring injury and is looking to start padding his statistics. He's batting just .154 so far. Yuli Gurriel is another batter who is yet to come alive. He batted an American League-best .319 last season, but is hitting just .213 over 75 at-bats in 2022.

Key Player - Kyle Tucker

Houston Astros outfielder Kyle Tucker is coming alive at the plate

Kyle Tucker is looking like his 2021 self these days. He's batting .563 and has a .529 on-base percentage in his last four games, which combines for an unearthly 1.217 OPS. Here's the catch: He's only got two RBI to show for all those stats. He'll change that if he keeps hitting anything north of .300.

"MLB Player Prop: Kyle Tucker O1.5 TBs +108 Bov 2% last of the Day: Kyle Tucker HR +420 FD 0.5% *Cashed 2 of our last 3 BotD's *Tucker Over 1.5 TBs L8 games w 2 HR in L6 *4 for 12 w HR vs SP Gonzales *1 for 3 HR vs a primary RP Swanson" - @ StevesBook

Tucker just needs more opportunities to hit with more runners in scoring position. Those will come with his inevitable promotion in the batting order. He's only batting sixth right now.

Houston Astros Projected Lineup

Starting Pitcher: José Urquidy (RHP)

Jose Altuve (R) 2B
Michael Brantley (L) DH
Alex Bregman (R) 3B
Yordan Alvarez (L) LF
Yuli Gurriel (R) 1B
Kyle Tucker (L) RF
Chas McCormick (R) CF
Jeremy Pena (R) SS
Martin Maldonado (R) C

Detroit Tigers vs Houston Astros Prediction

Houston Astros starting pitcher José Urquidy has been waiting for an opportunity to pitch against a slumping team like the Detroit Tigers. He's faced the Toronto Blue Jays his last two times out and performed modestly. If he can bring his old stuff back against the Tigers, expect a low score for the visiting team. With Altuve back and Tucker heating up, we're predicting a 3-1 Astros victory.