Houston Astros vs Toronto Blue Jays online live streaming authentic links radio commentry audio broadcast May 22, 2011. Don't have time to watch the game ? predict yourself who will win. Read the Early Match Review: After a quiet week, Jose Bautista is looking to put together a second straight very big weekend.
A day after adding two to his major league-leading home run total, Bautista tries to lead the Toronto Blue Jays to a ninth win in 11 tries as they close a three-game set with the visiting Houston Astros on Sunday.
Bautista hopes to end this weekend as well as the last one, when he homered three times in an 11-3 victory at Minnesota on Sunday after hitting the go-ahead homer in the 11th inning of a 9-3 win Saturday.
He was one shy of matching his longest homerless drought of the season at five games going into this Saturday and had been hitless in two straight -- his only such stretch of the year.
Toronto was down 4-0 after five innings before rallying behind Bautista, who hit home runs No. 17 and 18 en route to a 7-5 victory. He went 3 for 4 and tied a season high with four RBIs as the Blue Jays (23-22) rebounded from a 5-2 loss in the series opener.
"It's always a surprise when you keep hitting home runs," said Bautista, who went deep an MLB-best 54 times in 2010. "I'm not surprised about the RBIs or the fact that I'm playing well. Given what happened last year, knowing what I feel like I'm capable of doing, I expected to perform at a high level. I'm doing probably a little bit better than I expected."
Ten of his home runs have come at Rogers Centre, where he is batting .400 in 16 games. He has keyed the Blue Jays' 8-2 surge, during which they've averaged 5.9 runs with 15 homers.
Bautista is 1 for 12 with six strikeouts against Astros probable starter Wandy Rodriguez (2-3, 3.45 ERA), but they haven't faced each other since 2008.
Rodriguez has a 1.50 ERA over his last four starts and is coming off perhaps his best outing of the year. He gave up five hits over eight scoreless innings of Tuesday's 3-1, 11-inning defeat at Atlanta.
The left-hander struggled during interleague play last season, losing all three of his starts while posting a 10.93 ERA. He won the only time he faced the Blue Jays on June 10, 2005, overcoming a career high-tying six walks to last six innings in a 4-2 victory.
He'll be opposed by rookie Kyle Drabek (3-2, 4.32), whose father, Doug Drabek, spent four seasons with Houston during his 13-year career.
The 23-year-old Drabek had gone 0-2 with an 8.31 ERA during his three previous starts before beating Detroit on Monday, surrendering one run and three hits over seven innings in a 4-2 victory.
"He's got really outstanding stuff," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said of Drabek, who walked a career-worst six. "His control isn't as good as his dad's, but he throws a little harder."
The right-hander leads the AL with 34 walks, a big reason he's averaging less than six innings through nine outings but has thrown more than 100 pitches in seven of them.
"Obviously, he's putting people on base with the walks, but he's not letting them carry over to the next hitter," manager John Farrell said. "He's going after people."
Houston (16-30) is looking to avoid a seventh loss in eight games and a seventh straight series loss.
A day after adding two to his major league-leading home run total, Bautista tries to lead the Toronto Blue Jays to a ninth win in 11 tries as they close a three-game set with the visiting Houston Astros on Sunday.
1:07 PM ET, May 22, 2011
Rogers Centre, Toronto, Ontario
Starting Pitchers"Man, this guy's a freak." Blue Jays rookie Eric Thames said of Bautista. "You think you can just hold him down, but he makes adjustments. He just smashes the ball."
Houston: Rodriguez (2-3, 3.45 ERA)
Toronto: Drabek (3-2, 4.32 ERA)
Bautista hopes to end this weekend as well as the last one, when he homered three times in an 11-3 victory at Minnesota on Sunday after hitting the go-ahead homer in the 11th inning of a 9-3 win Saturday.
He was one shy of matching his longest homerless drought of the season at five games going into this Saturday and had been hitless in two straight -- his only such stretch of the year.
Toronto was down 4-0 after five innings before rallying behind Bautista, who hit home runs No. 17 and 18 en route to a 7-5 victory. He went 3 for 4 and tied a season high with four RBIs as the Blue Jays (23-22) rebounded from a 5-2 loss in the series opener.
"It's always a surprise when you keep hitting home runs," said Bautista, who went deep an MLB-best 54 times in 2010. "I'm not surprised about the RBIs or the fact that I'm playing well. Given what happened last year, knowing what I feel like I'm capable of doing, I expected to perform at a high level. I'm doing probably a little bit better than I expected."
Ten of his home runs have come at Rogers Centre, where he is batting .400 in 16 games. He has keyed the Blue Jays' 8-2 surge, during which they've averaged 5.9 runs with 15 homers.
Bautista is 1 for 12 with six strikeouts against Astros probable starter Wandy Rodriguez (2-3, 3.45 ERA), but they haven't faced each other since 2008.
Rodriguez has a 1.50 ERA over his last four starts and is coming off perhaps his best outing of the year. He gave up five hits over eight scoreless innings of Tuesday's 3-1, 11-inning defeat at Atlanta.
The left-hander struggled during interleague play last season, losing all three of his starts while posting a 10.93 ERA. He won the only time he faced the Blue Jays on June 10, 2005, overcoming a career high-tying six walks to last six innings in a 4-2 victory.
He'll be opposed by rookie Kyle Drabek (3-2, 4.32), whose father, Doug Drabek, spent four seasons with Houston during his 13-year career.
The 23-year-old Drabek had gone 0-2 with an 8.31 ERA during his three previous starts before beating Detroit on Monday, surrendering one run and three hits over seven innings in a 4-2 victory.
"He's got really outstanding stuff," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said of Drabek, who walked a career-worst six. "His control isn't as good as his dad's, but he throws a little harder."
The right-hander leads the AL with 34 walks, a big reason he's averaging less than six innings through nine outings but has thrown more than 100 pitches in seven of them.
"Obviously, he's putting people on base with the walks, but he's not letting them carry over to the next hitter," manager John Farrell said. "He's going after people."
Houston (16-30) is looking to avoid a seventh loss in eight games and a seventh straight series loss.
