11:38 AM ET
  • ESPN Stats and Information

This week's Sunday Night Baseball matchup will feature the Boston Red Sox[2] visiting the Houston Astros[3] at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN.

This game will likely showcase offense, not pitching. The two teams have the worst starting rotations in the American League this season, with the Astros carrying a 5.38 ERA and the Red Sox a 5.21. As a result, the Red Sox are second in the AL in bullpen innings (58 1/3) and the Astros are fourth (54).

We take a look at the top stats to know on each team.

Red Sox Notes

Just how much has the Red Sox rotation struggled?

31-year-old knuckleballer Steven Wright[4] leads the rotation in ERA by a huge margin. He's lacking in major-league starting experience: he's never made more than nine starts in a single season (2015).

There isn't immediate help on the horizon, either. Their best pitching prospect (according to Keith Law) is Anderson Espinoza, an 18-year-old pitching in Single-A. Their second-best prospect is Michael Kopech (he'll turn 20 next week), who didn't pitch after July 12th last year because of a PED suspension, and hasn't pitched this year after breaking his hand in a fight with a teammate in March.

On the offensive side, David Ortiz[5] is off to a good start this season. He has 10 extra-base hits already, fifth-most in the majors behind Manny Machado[6], Trevor Story[7], Josh Donaldson[8] and Bryce Harper[9].

Ortiz continues to make his way up several all-time leaderboards, currently sitting in 26th place in RBI and 19th in extra-base hits.

Hanley Ramirez[10] is off to a slow start, with 17 strikeouts and two walks. His well-hit percentage is just 11.9 percent, 137th out of 197 qualified hitters. Ramirez is owed $68.25M for the next three seasons.

Astros Notes

Carlos Correa[11] is already tied for sixth on the Astros all-time list for HR as a SS, and he's played in just 115 major league games. The Astros franchise record for HR as a SS is 35 by Adam Everett — Correa is already 11 from breaking that record, on April 24.

Taking down records at the position is part of Correa's game. Last season, Correa became the second-youngest player in baseball history to start a postseason game at shortstop. The youngest was Travis Jackson for the New York Giants[12] in 1924.

It looks like Jose Altuve[13] is becoming a different hitter this season, with five HR in April. He had five HR in April in his career entering this season. Last year, the AL hits leader had 15 for the season – the first time he'd ever hit double-digit HR.

The Astros shift on defense more than any team in baseball. Over the past four seasons, they've shifted almost 500 more times (3,410) than the next-closest team (2,923 by the Rays). This season they're on pace to shift 50% more than last season.

Houston gets most of its defensive value from the shift. They have 14 Defensive Runs Saved, but they're +7 because of shifts.