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SEATTLE -- The red-hot Seattle Mariners are making a final push in the American League wild-card race as they begin a three-game series with the undermanned Houston Astros on Friday night.Six of Seattles final 16 games come against Houston (76-70), which is two games behind the Mariners (78-68). Seattle is tied with Detroit, two games behind Toronto for the final wild-card spot, with the New York Yankees three back.The Astros will likely be without MVP candidate Jose Altuve, who left Wednesdays 8-4 victory over Texas with an oblique injury. Also, rookie Alex Bregman (hamstring) is expected to be out of Fridays lineup.Theyre getting looked at, getting all the tests (from) doctors, Houston manager A.J. Hinch said. Theyre going to have a full evaluation before were going to know anything, but Im not optimistic about Friday for either of them.Altuve leads the AL in batting average (.341) and hits (196) while his 24 home runs and 94 RBI are career highs. Bregman is hitting .260 with eight homers and 32 RBI in 47 games.Seattle is coming off back-to-back sweeps of AL West doormats Oakland and Los Angeles after it appeared out of the race when it hit the road nine days ago.Outstanding trip, manager Scott Servais told reporters Wednesday night. Guys are really confident. The energy is up. It should be a really fun homestand coming up.The streak coincides with a return to form by the Mariners starting rotation, which had fallen on hard times before getting well against some of the leagues worst offenses. Hisashi Iwakuma and Taijuan Walker put together solid back-to-back starts heading into Thursdays off day, and Seattle looks to ace Felix Hernandez to continue that trend Friday night.Hernandez (11-5) recovered from back-to-back tough outings to throw six scoreless innings in Oakland his last time out.Houston counters with Mariner-killer Collin McHugh, who is 3-0 with a 1.50 ERA in three starts against Seattle this season. McHugh (10-10) is one of the few Astros starters who have stayed healthy during an injury-plagued month. Dallas Keuchel and Lance McCullers have succumbed to injuries, putting pressure on pitchers such as McHugh to step up and keep Houston in the playoff race.Wednesday starter Joe Musgrove did his part by throwing 6 1/3 solid innings as the Astros etched out an 8-4 victory over Texas to close out that series.I want to see them again, Astros manager A.J. Hinch said of the Rangers. If we see them again, it means were meeting in October, so bring it. I hope were there.Before the Astros can think about a second consecutive postseason appearance, theyll have to hurdle four teams. Unless they can take at least two of three this weekend, thats probably not going to happen.Every game matters right now, Astros infielder Marwin Gonzalez told reporters after Wednesdays victory. Were going to try to win as much as we can, and thats it.Nike Air Max 270 Heren Goedkoop .ca NHL Power Rankings for the second straight week, ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Colorado Avalanche. Nike Air Max 90 Aanbieding . Thousands of Southern California fans enveloped the Trojans to celebrate an improbable win secured by an interim coach, an inconsistent kicker and a thin defence that wouldnt break. http://www.airmaxkopennederland.com/uitverkoop-air-max-90/max-90-heren.html . -- Ken Appleby made 32 saves for his first shutout of the season to lead the Oshawa Generals to a 2-0 win over the Belleville Bulls on Wednesday in Ontario Hockey League action. Nike Air Max 97 Nederland . Manuel was offered a position the day he was fired. He accepted earlier this week and the team made the announcement Friday. Nike Air Max 270 React Nederland . Booth picked up 65 caps after making her national team debut in 2002 at the age of 17. She most recently played for Sky Blue FC of the National Womens Soccer League. "It just felt like it was my time to move on," she said in a phone interview from her hometown of Burlington, Ont.ESPN Chalks Vegas experts are here to provide analysis and best bets for all Week 5 games, including the San Diego-Oakland matchup.Note: All odds courtesy of the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook as of Friday morning.Home page for all Week 5 gamesMatchup: San Diego Chargers at Oakland RaidersSpread: Opened Oakland -3.5; now Oakland -3.5. Total: Opened 50.5; now 50 PickCenter public consensus pick: 52 percent OaklandPublic perception: The Raiders are becoming more of a public teeam at 3-1, but the Chargers continue to be competitive in every game so the percentage on the home favorite isnt as high as expected.ddddddddddddWiseguys view: Sharps are also split on this matchup as they originally bet the Raiders from -3.5 to -4 with some books going to -4.5, but its come back down to 3.5 across the board.Dave Tuleys take: ' ' '