George Springer, Jose Altuve Lead Astros to Victory over Mariners

The Houston Astros continue to dominate the Seattle Mariners after a 7-2 victory over their American League West rival on Saturday at Minute Maid Park.

Fresh off an 8-2 victory in Friday's season opener, the Astros had no problems getting their second straight victory of the season. Lance McCullers Jr., making his first start since August 2018 after having Tommy John surgery, gave the reigning AL champs an impressive outing to earn the victory.

Houston has now won 15 straight games against the Mariners dating back to June 5, 2019. This marks the team's first 2-0 start in a season since 2017.

Notable Player Stats

Lance McCullers Jr. (HOU): 6 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 6 K

Yuli Gurriel (HOU): 1-2, Solo HR, BB

George Springer (HOU): 1-4, Solo HR

Jose Altuve (HOU): 1-2, 2 R, 2 BB

Taijuan Walker (SEA): 3.1 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, BB, K

Kyle Lewis (SEA): 1-3, Solo HR

J.P. Crawford (SEA): 3-4, 2 3B, 1 R

McCullers Is Key for Houston's Starting Rotation

There aren't many flaws in Houston's roster, but this is the first time during the organization's rise to prominence three years ago that the starting rotation has been a significant question mark.

Reigning AL Cy Young winner Justin Verlander shows no sign of slowing down. Gerrit Cole left the Astros to sign with the New York Yankees, though, leaving McCullers and Zack Greinke to pick up the slack.

McCullers is the wild card of that trio because he's coming off Tommy John surgery that kept him out all of last season. This wasn't the most efficient game for the right-hander—he threw 55 of 92 pitches for strikes and walked three Mariners hitters—but for a first start back, this was very promising.

At this stage of Greinke's career, he's not an overpowering pitcher. The six-time All-Star averaged 8.1 strikeouts per nine innings last season, his lowest total since 2016. He's still very good at keeping hitters off balance and generating soft contact, which will allow him to be effective.

McCullers has true swing-and-miss stuff when he's at his best. The Astros need him to play up to his full potential this season if they want to reach their ceiling and get back to the World Series.

Kyle Lewis Giving Mariners Glimpse of the Future

It's no secret that this is expected to be another rebuilding year for the Mariners, but there are plenty of signs of hope in the farm system. 

As the wait continues for top prospect Jarred Kelenic, Seattle opened the season with Evan White and Kyle Lewis on the MLB roster. 

Lewis was already on the radar for Mariners fans after he hit six homers in 18 games last season. The 25-year-old opened the season with a solo homer and took McCullers deep for his second of the year in two games.    

While Lewis will presumably slow down, he hit three homers in two scrimmage games when the Mariners returned to summer camp earlier this month.

If Lewis can keep hitting at anything close to this pace and White eventually settles into his role as a middle-of-the-order bat, by the time Kelenic joins the squad, the Mariners could have one of the best young offensive cores in MLB.

What's Next?

The Mariners and Astros will play the third game in their four-game opening series Sunday at 2:10 p.m. ET.