MLB Game Preview: Cleveland Guardians (40-48) vs. Houston Astros (55-35)

The Houston Astros, one of the hottest teams in baseball, return home to open a three-game series against the slumping Cleveland Guardians. Houston is coming off a dominant road sweep of the Dodgers and has won 11 of its last 13 games. Meanwhile, Cleveland enters the series on a 10-game losing streak and desperately needs a turnaround to stay in the AL Wild Card race.

Game Details

Matchup	Cleveland Guardians vs Houston Astros
Date	Monday, July 7, 2025
First Pitch	8:10 PM ET
Venue	Daikin Park, Houston, TX
Broadcast	Bally Sports Great Lakes, Space City Home Network, MLB.tv
Season Series	Astros lead 2–1

Team Records & Recent Form

Team	Record	Last 10 Games	Division Rank
Houston Astros	55–35	8–2	1st in AL West
Cleveland Guardians	40–48	0–10	4th in AL Central

• The Astros are 32–14 at home and have outscored opponents 65–34 over their last 10 games.
• The Guardians are 20–25 on the road and have been outscored 61–29 during their 10-game skid.

Starting Pitching Matchup

Houston Astros: Colton Gordon (3–1, 4.37 ERA)

• 45.1 IP, 41 K, 1.42 WHIP
• Last outing: 4.2 IP, 4 ER, 9 H vs. Rockies
• Unbeaten in his last five starts
• Faced Cleveland on June 6: 5 IP, 1 ER, 5 K in a 4–2 win
• Opponents hitting .302 against him

Cleveland Guardians: Tanner Bibee (4–9, 4.20 ERA)

• 94.1 IP, 98 K, 1.31 WHIP
• Last outing: 4 IP, 5 ER, 6 H, 4 BB vs. Cubs
• Has lost five straight decisions
• Faced Houston on June 8: 6.1 IP, 2 ER, 6 K in a 4–2 win
• 0–5 with a 5.09 ERA over his last 7 starts

Players to Watch

Houston Astros

• Jose Altuve: .272 AVG, 16 HR – hitting .500 with 3 HR and 10 RBI over last 5 games
• Isaac Paredes: 18 HR, 48 RBI – 5-game hitting streak, .333 AVG over that span
• Yainer Diaz: .248 AVG, 12 HR – batting .412 over last 5 games
• Jake Meyers: .308 AVG – 15 doubles, 2 triples, 3 HR

Cleveland Guardians

• Jose Ramirez: .297 AVG, 14 HR, 39 RBI – team leader in HR and RBI
• Steven Kwan: .298 AVG – 2nd consecutive All-Star selection
• Carlos Santana: .235 AVG, 10 HR – veteran presence in the middle of the order
• Kyle Manzardo: 13 HR – power bat with 11 doubles and 2 triples

Injury Report Highlights

Cleveland Guardians

• Shane Bieber, Trevor Stephan, John Means, Sam Hentges – 60-day IL
• Lane Thomas, Gabriel Arias – 10-day IL
• Will Brennan – 60-day IL

Houston Astros

• Yordan Alvarez, Ronel Blanco, Luis Garcia, Cristian Javier, J.P. France – 60-day IL
• Jeremy Peña, Luis Guillorme, Chas McCormick – 10-day IL
• Shawn Dubin, Pedro Leon – 15-day IL