Astros win the series
Astros daily report presented by APG&E: 3 hits from the 7-1 win
Aug 1, 2019, 9:20 pm
Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images
The Astros had one more game on the road before returning home; a rubber game in the three-game series with the Indians in Cleveland. A win would end their road trip with their fourth-straight series win. Here is how the game shaped up:
Final Score: Astros 7, Indians 1.
Record: 70-40, first in the AL West.
Winning pitcher: Gerrit Cole (13-5, 2.87 ERA).
Losing pitcher: Danny Salazar (0-1, 4.50 ERA).
1) Springer starts things with a bang
George Springer hits a leadoff homer for the 1 millionth time in his career. pic.twitter.com/61cRRUx3DJ
— MLB (@MLB) August 1, 2019
George Springer did not welcome Danny Salazar back to a major-league mound with an easy out. Instead, Springer launched the third pitch of the game for a dinger to put Houston up 1-0 immediately. That would be the only run scored through the first three innings, with the next coming off the bat of Alex Bregman with a solo home run of his own to double the lead at 2-0.
Springer would come around to score again later in the game, working a one-out walk in the top of the seventh. He moved to second on a single by Jose Altuve, then scored on an RBI-double by Michael Brantley, making it a 3-1 Houston lead. That brought Bregman back to the plate, and he delivered an RBI-single to extend the lead further to 4-1, and also put him a triple shy of the cycle.
2) Not a lot of Ks, but still another terrific start for Cole
While Gerrit Cole did not increase his league-best strikeout number by as much as usual on Thursday night, it didn't mean his start was any less successful. Cole allowed just one run, which after putting runners on second and third with no outs in the bottom of the fourth, was a gift.
He received some terrific defense behind him, both with a great catch by Springer on a sac fly that could've been more runs, then on a laser from Josh Reddick on another fly ball to throw a runner out at home to end the inning and the threat.
Getting some quick non-strikeout outs allowed Cole to go another deep start, finishing seven innings for the sixth time in his last seven games, and making it four straight seven-inning one-run starts. His final line: 7 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4K, 0 HR.
3) Taking the series win
Houston's offense battled again in the top of the eighth, loading the bases with one out to set up a sacrifice fly for Michael Brantley, his second RBI of the night to extend the lead to 5-1. After Bregman worked a walk to load the bases again, Yordan Alvarez drove in two more runs on a two-RBI double to make it 7-1.
With Cole's night done after his seven innings, Houston turned things over to their bullpen to close out the win. Hector Rondon would get a couple of quick outs but then loaded the bases, prompting another call to the bullpen. Joe Smith would get out of the jam to end the eighth, then Chris Devenski closed out the win with a 1-2-3 ninth.
Up Next: The Astros will fly back to Houston tonight to start a three-game series with the Mariners at home tomorrow night. The series opener will begin at 7:10 PM and the expected pitching matchup is Wade Miley (9-4, 3.06 ERA) for Houston going against Yusei Kikuchi (4-7, 5.21 ERA) for Seattle.
The Astros daily report is presented by APG&E.
The Houston Texans addressed their most glaring needs by selecting offensive tackle Aireontae Ersery and a pair of Iowa State receivers in the NFL draft.
“The idea was to try to add good players, good people that are young, tough, hungry, that want to win, that put the team first,” general manager Nick Caserio said. “These picks exemplify that.”
The Texans got players that could help them quickly despite not picking in the first round for a second straight season. They didn’t have a first-round pick last year because of trades, including the one to move up and get defensive end Will Anderson with the third overall pick in the 2023 draft.
This season they shipped the 25th overall pick to the Giants on Thursday in exchange for several picks.
Their first selection in this draft was receiver Jayden Higgins, who was taken with the second pick of the second round. They added Ersery later in the second round with the 48th overall selection and picked up Higgins’ teammate Jaylin Noel in the third round.
Ersery could be Houston’s left tackle of the future after the offseason trade of five-time Pro Bowl left tackle Laremy Tunsil. Ersery started 38 games at left tackle over three seasons at Minnesota where he was a third-team All-American last season.
He comes to Houston to help shore up a line that allowed C.J. Stroud to be sacked 52 times last season, which was the second most in the NFL.
The Texans added veteran tackle Cam Robinson this offseason and Ersery will compete with him to protect Stroud’s blind side as the Texans attempt to reach the playoffs for a third straight season under coach DeMeco Ryans.
The 6-foot-6, 331-pound Ersery, who was the Big Ten’s Offensive Lineman of the Year last season, can’t wait to play with Stroud.
“C.J. Stroud is a baller,” Ersery said. “I’m so honored to be a guy to help out and come in and help protect him. I’m just super stoked and I know I’m going to a great organization.”
Cyclones teammates
Higgins and Noel join the Texans to add more depth at receiver to complement star Nico Collins with Tank Dell recovering from a serious knee injury and Stefon Diggs gone to the Patriots.
Higgins, who has been compared to Collins, had 87 receptions for 1,183 yards and nine touchdowns last season for the Cyclones and Noel added 80 catches for 1,194 yards and eight scores.
After Higgins was drafted, Noel never imagined he’d be heading to Houston, too. He shared on social media a fortune he received from a Chinese restaurant that read: “Look forward to an unplanned reunion with an out-of-touch friend.”
Noel later shared his feelings about joining Higgins on the roster.
“I was surprised,” Noel said. “But they’ve seen that 1-2 punch all year. They’re going to be very happy with those selections for sure.”
Caserio said a talk with Iowa State coach Matt Campbell on Friday helped him make his final decisions on the receivers.
“He was effusive in his… belief and praise of both Higgins and Noel,” Caserio said.
The Texans now have three receivers from Iowa State on their roster after drafting Xavier Hutchinson in the sixth round in 2023.
Overcoming obstacles
Ersery and his four siblings were raised by a single mother and experienced homelessness when he was a child despite her working multiple jobs. He is thrilled to have put those struggles behind him as he embarks on his next chapter.
“I’ve got that hardworking mentality from her,” he said. “So, growing up times were tough but now I’ve got my foot in the door and I look forward to trying to change some things around.”
Caserio loves guys with work ethic like Ersery’s and said that’s one reason why they believe he’ll fit in with the Texans.
“If you come in and put your head down and work and just get better, take advantage of your opportunities, you’re going to have a shot to have success and do a lot of good things for the organization,” he said.
What’s in a name?
Along with Noel, the Texans added another Jaylin in this draft with they picked USC cornerback Jaylin Smith in the third round.
“We got Jaylins, and we got all these guys around. It’s going to be hard to keep them straight,” Caserio joked on Friday after they picked Smith.
Then on Saturday, the Texans added another player with the same name, albeit with a different spelling, when they took Penn State safety Jaylen Reed in the sixth round.
That gives them four players with the same name and three different spellings as the three rookies join starting safety Jalen Pitre on the team.
Doubling up
Along with drafting two players from Iowa State, the Texans also added a pair of players from Southern California when they picked running back Woody Marks in the fourth round after drafting Smith in the third.
Marks ran for a career-high 1,133 yards with nine touchdowns for the Trojans last season after transferring from Mississippi State.
Be sure to watch the video below as NFL.com Draft Analyst Lance Zierlein shares his thoughts on all the Texans' picks!