Astros lifted over Mariners by two grand slams
Astros daily report: Astros 10, Mariners 6
Apr 13, 2019, 12:32 am
Astros lifted over Mariners by two grand slams
The Astros were in Seattle for the first of three games in the big matchup against the Mariners. Here's the breakdown of the game:
Final Score: Astros 10, Mariners 6
Record: 9-5, second in the AL West.
Winning pitcher: Brad Peacock (2-0).
Losing pitcher: Shawn Armstrong (0-1).
Stars of the game: Jose Altuve and Yuli Gurriel both had clutch grand slams which pushed Houston over the top in the win. Altuve's slam flipped the game from a 3-2 Mariners lead to 6-3 Astros lead and extended his streak to four consecutive games with a homer. Gurriel's slam stopped the momentum of the Mariners who had gotten within a run in the previous inning.
Notes: After the Astros went down in order in the top of the first, Wade Miley struggled in the bottom of the inning, giving up a run on three hits and a walk on 41 pitches, all in the first inning. Seattle extended the lead to 3-0 in the second, getting a two-out, two-RBI single to shallow center field, just out of Jake Marisnick's diving grasp. George Springer got the Astros back in it in the top of the third, blasting a two-run homer to trim the deficit to one run. After the first and second inning struggles, Miley's pitch count was high after four innings, resulting in Brad Peacock making an appearance from the bullpen to take over in the 3-2 game in the fifth, keeping the one-run game in play. The Astros did damage against Seattle's bullpen in the top of the sixth, loading the bases for Jose Altuve who continued his home run streak by launching a grand slam to double up the Mariners at 6-3. Seattle would battle back in the bottom of the seventh, scoring one run on a wild pitch from Peacock then getting an RBI groundout to get back within a run at 6-5. Houston wanted to give their bullpen more room to work with, and proceeded to load the bases in the top of the eighth to set up the second grand slam of the night, this time from Yuli Gurriel to make it a 10-5 advantage. Peacock faced one more batter in the bottom of the eighth, then Chris Devenski finished that inning off before continuing in the ninth. After a solo home run from the Mariners along with getting a couple of runners on against Devenski, A.J. Hinch left nothing to chance, going to Roberto Osuna to get the final out to lock up the win.
Up next: After breaking the Mariners' winning streak on Friday night, the Astros will look to lock up the series win and extend their own winning streak to 8 with a win on Saturday night. First pitch will be at 8:10 PM and will feature Justin Verlander on the mound for Houston and Felix Hernandez for Seattle.
The New York Jets interviewed Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith and Houston Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik for their head coach position Thursday.
The meetings with Smith and Slowik gave the Jets 12 known candidates with whom they've spoken about their vacancy.
New York has also interviewed Aaron Glenn, Vance Joseph, Mike Locksley, Matt Nagy, Ron Rivera, Darren Rizzi, Rex Ryan, Steve Spagnuolo, Jeff Ulbrich and Mike Vrabel for the job. Vrabel has since been hired by New England as its coach.
Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores and Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley are also expected to meet soon with the Jets.
The 42-year-old Smith, who was the Atlanta Falcons' head coach from 2021-23, was considered one of the Jets' top candidates in 2021 when he interviewed with the team before New York hired Robert Saleh. Smith was hired by the Falcons the next day and went 21-30, with three straight 7-10 finishes, before being fired after the 2023 season.
Mike Tomlin hired Smith last offseason to run the Steelers' offense, which improved in several categories this season with Russell Wilson at quarterback as Pittsburgh made the playoffs.
Smith spent 10 years with Tennessee, including the last two as the Titans' offensive coordinator in 2019 and 2020. He previously had a stint with Washington as its defensive quality control coach in between college stops at North Carolina (2006) and Mississippi (2010).
The 37-year-old Slowik met with the Jets in a video interview since the Texans remain in the playoffs and are preparing to face the Chiefs in Kansas City on Saturday.
He's in his second year running the Texans' offense with quarterback C.J. Stroud, who was last season's AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and has been one of the league's most dynamic young playmakers.
Slowik, whose father Bob coaches in the CFL after several years as an NFL assistant, spent six years as an assistant under Kyle Shanahan in San Francisco before joining the Texans. The Princeton, New Jersey, native started his pro coaching career as a video assistant for Washington in 2010 before being promoted to defensive assistant, a role he held for three years. Slowik then worked at Pro Football Focus as a senior analyst for three years before being hired by the 49ers.
The Jets are also conducting an extensive search for a new general manager. They have interviewed 15 candidates for that position, including Green Bay Packers executive Jon-Eric Sullivan and Miami Dolphins assistant general manager Brian Gaine on Tuesday.