Astros vs, Cardinals Game Thread: Game 22, 4/18/2026

The Houston Astros (8-13) will play the second of a three-game series with their former division rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals (11-8), tonight at Daikin Park. RHP Lance McCullers Jr (1-0, 5.87 ERA) will make his fourth regular season appearance for the Astros tonight opposite the Cardinals and sta

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What is the story about?

The Houston Astros (8-13) will play the second of a three-game series with their former division rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals (11-8), tonight at Daikin Park.

RHP Lance McCullers Jr (1-0, 5.87 ERA) will make his fourth regular season appearance for the Astros tonight opposite the Cardinals and starter RHP Andre Pallante (1-1, 4.80 ERA).

TONIGHT’S STARTER: RHP Lance McCullers is making his fourth start of the season as he tries to get back to the form we saw before he went down in 2022.

This season,

McCullers opened the season with a brilliant seven inning outing, but has since struggled to get through the fifth inning. Those two outings came on the road and McCullers returns home where he had that brilliant outing.

HOME-COOKIN’: Tonight is the fifth game of a six-game homestand for the Astros, in which they’ll host a pair of NL opponents in the Rockies (2-1) and Cardinals (0-1). The Astros have been good at home in 2026, going 7-4, including a seven-game winning streak, before losing two games in a row.

VS. THE CARDS: This series is a matchup of former division rivals, who spent 19 seasons together in the NL Central from 1994-2012.

Overall, the two teams have played each other 722 times, with the Astros going 336-385.

These teams also have postseason history, with the Astros going 7-6 vs. the Cards in the playoffs. The two clubs faced off in back-to-back NLCS in 2004-05 with St. Louis taking the ‘04 NLCS in seven games and Houston winning the ‘05 NLCS in six games.

THIS WEEKEND’S GIVEAWAYS: Tonight 10,000 fans will receive an Astros Ice Cream Bucket Hat, presented by Texas Bay Credit Union.

TODAY’S ROSTER MOVE: The Astros have claimed OF Dustin Harris off waivers from Chicago (AL)…to make room for Harris on the 40-man roster, the Astros have designated RHP J.P. France for assignment.