Houston's losing streak extended to five games

Astros daily report presented by APG&E: 3 hits from the 8-4 loss

Chris Campise
Aug 17, 2019, 6:11 pm
Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images

After the two teams went thirteen innings on Friday night with the A's ultimately winning, Houston looked to end their four-game skid with a win on Saturday afternoon. Here is a quick rundown of the game:

Final Score: A's 8, Astros 4.

Record: 78-46, first in the AL West.

Winning pitcher: Chris Bassitt (9-5, 3.61 ERA).

Losing pitcher: Rogelio Armenteros (1-1, 4.00 ERA).

1) Astros strike first

While it looked like Houston was going to jump out to an immediate lead in the top of the first after loading the bases, they instead stranded all three runners. However, they would still get on the board first by getting back-to-back singles to lead off the third before an RBI-double by Alex Bregman and sacrifice fly by Yordan Alvarez put them ahead 2-0.

After going down 5-2 in the bottom of the third, Houston would get their next run on a solo home run crushed by Yordan Alvarez in the top of the fifth. That got them within two runs at 5-3 at the time.

2) A poor third inning ruins the afternoon for Armenteros 

Rogelio Armenteros looked to be pitching well through the first two innings, allowing just one hit across the first two frames. However, he struggled to get the first out in the bottom of the third, loading the bases on three straight singles before Oakland would put up five runs and take a 5-2 lead.

Armenteros finished that horrible inning, as well as a quick fourth, but with his pitch count rising was not asked to go any further. His final line: 4.0 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 0 HR.

3) Alvarez crushes another, but Oakland secures series win

Chris Devenski was the first out of Houston's depleted bullpen, taking over for Armenteros to pitch the bottom of the fifth. He would post another poor appearance, allowing three runs to extend Oakland's lead to 8-3. Collin McHugh was next on the mound in the bottom of the sixth and although he also allowed Oakland to load the bases, was able to leave all runners stranded.

McHugh stayed in the game in the bottom of the seventh and was able to workout around a leadoff double to post a second scoreless inning. In the top of the eighth, Yordan Alvarez drilled his second home run of the day, making it an 8-4 game.

Joe Smith was the fourth pitcher of the game for Houston, throwing a scoreless bottom of the eighth inning. The Astros would come up empty in the top of the ninth, extending their losing streak to five games while Oakland secured the series win.

Up Next: Houston will conclude this series with the A's and also this road trip with one last game in Oakland on Sunday at 3:07 PM. The Astros will get their third start from Zack Greinke (12-4, 2.91 ERA) as they look to avoid the four-game sweep, while Oakland is expected to counter with Brett Anderson (10-8, 3.95 ERA).

The Astros daily report is presented by APG&E.

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BROWNS BEAT TEXANS

11 observations from Texans' 31-21 loss to Browns

Texans fall to Browns. Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images.

The Houston Texans kept it closer than the experts thought they would, but couldn't pull out a victory. Here are 11 observations from the loss in Cleveland to the Browns.

1. The game looks totally different if Texans quarterback Tyrod Taylor finishes the game. Taylor left at halftime with a hamstring injury. He was playing exceptionally well against his former team. Taylor is not expected to play Thursday according to NFL Network.

2. Davis Mills had a rocky NFL debut which was to be expected. Mills looked to have the wrong elements of a few plays. He also couldn't hit backup wideout Andre Roberts over the middle and threw an interception. It was a fine performance considering what Mills showed he could do in the preseason.

3. Mills didn't work with a full load of offensive weapons in the second half. Rookie wideout Nico Collins didn't return to the game after his lone catch and big run early in the game. Veteran slot receiver Danny Amendola left the game with an injury. Tight end Anthony Auclair left with an eye injury. The Texans entered the game without wide receiver Anthony Miller who was inactive.

4. Brandin Cooks is a monster through two games. He is the most dangerous skill position player on the team, and defenses still have trouble covering him and staying with him. Cooks turned in yet another impressive day for this team and hauled in a Davis Mills touchdown pass.

5. The Browns did a solid job against the ground game of the Texans. Mark Ingram averaged under three yards per carry and Tyrod Taylor was the only rusher to have a big play on the ground. This led to a fair number of third-and-long situations which the Texans usually had trouble converting.

6. Justin Reid was set to increase his payday on his next contract with his early play. Reid forced a fumble and had an interception in the first half. Unfortunately, Reid would leave the game multiple times with injuries. The knock on Reid has always been his health.

7. The Texans were worn down by the Browns rushing attack all day. Once Cleveland committed to the run they saw the success of their work culminating in a 26-yard scamper by Nick Chubb for a touchdown. The Browns didn't run as much as I excepted them to run early.

8. Tim Kelly had another nice day calling plays. Kelly remains creative in finding ways to get the ball out of Taylor's hands quickly as well as manufacturing matchups where the Texans can win and pick up yards. He even got creative to get Davis Mills a passing touchdown late in the game. Kelly has been very impressive through two games.

9. Andre Roberts was inexcusably bad today. The Texans defense held on the opening drive and his muffed punt eliminated the momentum from the defensive stand. He also had poor returns on kickoffs. His lone job is to be a solid returner, and he failed at that on Sunday.

10. David Culley had a head-scratching decision foregoing an offsides call on a third down. The head coach opted for the result of the third down, and a punt on fourth down, instead of another third down. He did not explain himself well postgame on the decision either.

11. The Texans hung tough and should feel solid about where they could have been without the injury to their quarterback. With no Taylor in the short week, it will not be easy to beat the Panthers who upset the Saints on Sunday.

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