Astros shutout the A's with multiple homers

Astros daily report: Astros 6, A's 0

Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images

A quick rundown of the second of three games between the Astros and A's from Saturday night:

Final Score: Astros 6, A's 0.

Record: 4-5, fourth in the AL West.

Winning pitcher: Wade Miley (1-1).

Losing pitcher: Aaron Brooks (1-1).

Star of the game: Wade Miley looked better in his second start, and first at home at Minute Maid Park than his first in Tampa Bay. Miley kept the A's off the board over five and two-thirds innings, holding them to just four hits and two walks to go with four strikeouts. Miley kept the defense working, as is his style, but kept the ball in the park and limited the traffic on the bases en route to the win. Honorable Mention: Yuli Gurriel was hot at the plate, going three for four with three doubles and an RBI.

Notes: After a quiet start to the game for both teams offensively, it was Yuli Gurriel who finally got the scoring started in the bottom of the fourth with his signature hit down the third base line all the way into the corner to put Houston up 1-0. George Springer extended the lead to 3-0 in the fifth by crushing a two-run bomb, his third homer of the year. Michael Brantley would match Springer later in the inning, launching a two-run homer of his own, breaking the game open to 5-0. With Miley's pitch count getting high, and the large lead in hand, A.J. Hinch relieved him for Will Harris who would get the last out of the sixth. Robinson Chirinos gave the bullpen one more run of cushion in the bottom of the sixth, getting a solo home run to make it 6-0. Josh James took over in the top of the seventh and worked around a couple of walks to maintain the six-run lead, Chris Devenski pitched a scoreless eighth, then Framber Valdez closed things off in the ninth to wrap up the win and secure the series win.

Up next: The Astros and A's will wrap up the weekend series tomorrow with first pitch at 1:10 PM. Brad Peacock gets the start for Houston and will look to improve to 2-0 and complete the series sweep, while former Astro Mike Fiers will be on the mound for Oakland.

Most Popular

SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome

Listen Live

ESPN Houston 97.5 FM
The Coogs play Miami on Friday night. Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images.

Number one seed University of Houston is favored by 7.5 points over No. 5 Miami, and No. 2 University of Texas is favored by 4 over No. 3 Xavier Friday night in the Midwest Regional semifinals in Kansas City.

Talk about opening acts. If both UH and UT win, they’ll meet Sunday in a good ol’ WWE-style Texas death match for a berth in the Final Four at NRG Stadium in Houston. Thank you, Mr. Schedule Maker.

How much do you think Cougar fans would love for UH to get their hands on the Longhorns with so much at stake?

For one example, let’s go back to the future, Oct. 21, 2023, when Big 12 rivals UH and UT meet in football at TDECU Stadium on the Houston campus. The game already is a lock sellout with tickets in the upper deck commanding $141 per ticket on the secondary market. It will be UH’s first year in the big boy Big 12 and UT’s last go-around before heading to the SEC.

One last opportunity for lasting bragging rights.

That’s for a UH football game. At home. Where the Cougars typically have trouble packing half the house. For example, the Cougars will be hosting the Sam Houston Bearkats at TDECU Stadium a month earlier. Tickets for that game, the same exact seat going for $141 against UT, can be had right now … $17.

Yeah, there’s something special about UH getting the opportunity to face UT. In anything. Anywhere. And it’s been a long time since the two teams, once co-members of the Southwest Conference together, have met on the basketball court. A full decade, in fact. The last time they played was March 20, 2013 with the Cougars prevailing 73-72 in something called the College Basketball Invitational. The UH coach was James Dickey. UT was coached by Rick Barnes. Joe Young led the Cougars with 18 points. The Horns’ leading scorer was Julien Lewis with 28. UH finished that season with a 20-13 record. UT limped home at 16-18.

That was then, this is now. The UH-Miami game will air at 6:10 p.m. Friday on CBS with UH grad Jim Nantz calling the play-by-play. The game will alsO stream on Hulu +++. ESPN’s BPI (basketball power index) gives the Cougars a 90 percent chance of winning. We’ll take it.

The UT-Xavier game will follow at 8:45 p.m. on CBS. The Horns have a 70 percent chance of beating the Musketeers. If both chalks come through, they’ll meet Sunday afternoon with the game on CBS.

The Cougars have made six Final Four appearances: 1967, 1968, 1982, 1983, 1984, 2021. The Horns have made three Final Fours, the last time two decades ago.

Here’s the only sure bet if UH and UT meet Sunday - get to your sports bar early if you want a seat. This could be memorable.

SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome