Things not going to get any easier for the Guardians

If you think you hate Mondays, imagine being the Guardians and knowing that you’re going to have to face the Astros over the next three days.

After a rough week that included being swept by the worst team in baseball and splitting the Tigers, the Guards will be tasked with taking on a team with the second-best record in the AL and one of the all-around great teams in baseball.

The Guardians will avoid facing Justin Verlander, but they’re still taking on three solid pitchers in Luis Garcia, Framber Valdez, and Cristian Javier. Garcia is the “worst” among the bunch so far this season with a 3.35 ERA, while Valdez and Javier have a 2.68 and 2.87 ERA, respectively.

Garcia’s last outing was one of his worst — 4.0 innings against the Reds Sox in which he allowed three earned runs and walked three. He’s a heavy fastball pitcher, though, so José Ramírez should be ready to feast at Minute Maid Park.

Cleveland does not have any listed starters for this series as of this writing, but Triston McKenzie, Zach Plesac, and Cal Quantrill should be lined up for the trio of 8:10 p.m. starts.

Team at a glance

• Record: 27-15 (2nd in AL)
• Runs Scored: 180
• Run Differential: +47 (2nd in AL)
• Last 10: 6-4
• Slash: .232/.310/.413
• wOBA: .320 (4th in AL)
• wRC+: 116 (3rd in AL)
• ERA: 2.84 (1st in AL)
• SIERA: 3.62 (5th in AL)
• K-BB%: 15.3% (5th in AL)

Projected starters

Monday, May 23, 8:10 p.m. ET: RHP Luis Garcia vs. TBD (RHP Triston McKenzie)
Tuesday, May 24, 8:10 p.m. ET: LHP Framber Valdez vs. TBD (RHP Zach Plesac)
Wednesday, May 25, 8:10 p.m. ET: RHP Cristian Javier vs. TBD (RHP Cal Quantrill)

Roster

• 40-man roster
• Depth chart