Here’s how Houston Astros will hope to sustain MLB-best run
STONE COLD 'STROS
01 July 2024
STONE COLD 'STROS
Hunter Brown pitched six shutout innings, Jeremy Peña and Yordan Alavarez hit home runs and the Houston Astros beat the Toronto Blue Jays 3-1 on Monday afternoon for their 10th win in 11 games.
Peña Power. #Relentless pic.twitter.com/rewIK6SlOy
— Houston Astros (@astros) July 1, 2024
After going 4-0 with a 1.16 ERA in five June starts, Brown (6-5) opened July with another solid outing. The right-hander allowed two hits, both singles. He walked three and struck out five.
Solid 6 from this guy. pic.twitter.com/z1biaT1BcL
— Houston Astros (@astros) July 1, 2024
Decked out in special red jerseys and caps, the Blue Jays lost on the Canada Day holiday for a second year in a row.
After Rafael Montero worked a 1-2-3 seventh inning, the Blue Jays loaded the bases against Bryan Abreu in the eighth. Abreu escaped by getting Daulton Varsho to ground out.
Josh Hader allowed a solo home run to Ernie Clement in the ninth but finished for his 13th save in 14 chances.
The Blue Jays have played 36 innings against the Astros this season and scored in just two of them. Toronto won 2-1 on April 2 when David Schneider hit a two-run home run off Hader in the ninth inning.
Clement's homer off Hader was his fourth of the season.
Houston’s Ronel Blanco threw a no-hitter against Toronto on April 1, and five Astros pitchers combined on a one-hit win over the Blue Jays on April 3.
Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was scratched from the lineup Monday because of pain in his right hand. Guerrero was hit on the fingers by a 96 mph fastball from Yankees right-hander Gerrit Cole in the third inning of Sunday’s loss to New York.
Toronto right-hander Yariel Rodríguez retired the first 14 batters before Peña hit a first-pitch homer in the fifth inning for his sixth of the season.
Rodríguez (0-3) allowed one run and two hits in a career-high 6 2/3 innings. He walked two and struck out six.
Alvarez gave the Astros some insurance with a two-run shot off Zach Pop in the ninth. The homer was his 17th.
All Star Behavior. https://t.co/UTDeXYLgwL pic.twitter.com/fsApl4syVd
— Houston Astros (@astros) July 1, 2024
ROSTER MOVES
Blue Jays: Toronto put catcher Danny Jansen on the paternity list and recalled catcher Brian Serven from Triple-A Buffalo.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Astros: 2B Jose Altuve got the day off. … Right-hander Justin Verlander (neck) resumed throwing over the weekend but there is no timetable for his return, manager Joe Espada said.
Blue Jays: INF Spencer Horwitz moved from second base to replace Guerrero, and Ernie Clement came in to play third. … INF Isiah Kiner-Falefa was scratched from the lineup because of a sore left knee. Kevin Kiermaier came in to play center, Daulton Varsho moved from center to left, and Davis Schneider went from left field to second.
UP NEXT
Blue Jays RHP José Berríos (7-6, 3.38 ERA) is scheduled to start Tuesday night against Astros RHP Spencer Arrighetti (4-6, 5.68).
Be sure to watch the video above as the guys from Stone Cold 'Stros react to the win live, and discuss how the Astros can sustain their success.
Both continue to roll along despite rashes of injuries. When the Astros awoke May 24 their record sat at 26-25. Since then they have gone 26-10. That is a dominant stretch despite this clearly not being a dominant team. The still Alvarez-less offense is mediocre. So is the starting pitching apart from the one-two awesome punch that Hunter Brown and Framber Valdez have been. When Brown or Valdez has been the Astros’ starting pitcher this season, the team record is 25-9. With anyone else making the start, 27-26. They have been every bit as dynamic a duo so far in 2025 that Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole were for the Astros in 2019 when Verlander edged out Cole to win his third Cy Young Award. Brown is a lock to be named to his first American League All-Star team this Sunday. Valdez is worthy of a third consecutive selection but could get caught in a numbers squeeze. Eight or nine starting pitchers are picked for each league.
The Dodgers won’t face Brown this weekend, but will have to deal with Valdez on Saturday night. His mound counterpart will be Shohei Ohtani. Oooooooh! Framber didn’t give up a run in 13 innings over his last two starts, and over his last 10 outings has a super-spiffy 1.72 earned run average. The amazing Ohtani is easing back into pitching after his second Tommy John surgery. Ohtani has started three games, totaling just four innings. He has yet to throw 30 pitches in an outing. Saturday he probably will be allowed 30 to 40.
Arms race
While Friday’s outing isn’t remotely a make or break start for Lance McCullers, it does speak to a significant question the Astros hope to find a pleasing answer to over the remainder of the regular season. Who is their third starting pitcher in a playoff series? After Brown and Valdez there is simply no one who inspires confidence at this point. McCullers has been awful his last two times out, jacking up his ERA to 6.61 eight starts into his season. 20 walks issued in 32 2 /3 innings pitched is glaringly bad. McCullers is still reasonably in ramp up mode, but given his injury history along with performance concerns, the third starter spot can’t be considered his to lose. Spencer Arrighetti’s resume is thin but his return at the level he pitched at after the All-Star break last season would be massive. Colt Gordon and Brandon Walter have both done some nice fill-in work, but no one plausibly wants them starting what would be a do or die game if the Astros wind up in a game three of a best-of-three Wild Card series.
Historic achievement
Not as if it’s subplot or anything this weekend, but let’s call it notable that the two active career hits leaders in Major League Baseball share the field this weekend. Jose Altuve this week vaulted past Jeff Bagwell for second in Astros’ history behind Craig Biggio. Altuve enters the weekend 743 hits behind Biggio. He is no lock to catch him before Altuve’s five-year contract expires at the end of the 2029 season. Altuve will be 39 then. Biggio was 41 when he rapped his 3000th hit, then added 60 more before beginning the waiting game for election to the Hall of Fame.
Like Biggio got and presumably someday Altuve will get, Dodger first baseman Freddie Freeman will get the call from Cooperstown some day. Like Altuve, Freeman is 35 years old, has won a Most Valuable Player Award, one Gold Glove, and with his selection this week been named an All-Star nine times. Aaron Judge may change this in the next couple of years, but among active players only Mike Trout (by a long shot) has compiled more Baseball-Reference offensive Wins Above Replacement than Freeman (second) and Altuve (third).
For Astro-centric conversation, join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!
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