Yankees too much for the Astros yet again

Astros daily report presented by APG&E: 3 hits from the 7-5 loss

Chris Campise
Jun 22, 2019, 8:25 pm
Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images

Carrying a six-game losing streak on their shoulders, the Astros went back to work on Saturday night in a nationally televised game to try and right the ship against the Yankees. Here's how they did:

Final Score: Yankees 7, Astros 5.

Record: 48-30, first in the AL West.

Winning pitcher: Jonathan Holder (5-2, 5.55 ERA).

Losing pitcher: Ryan Pressly (1-1, 1.31 ERA).

1) Miley terrific early, struggles late 

Wade Miley's night started less than ideal, walking his first batter on four pitches then going down 2-0 on the next. He was able to bounce back very quickly, though, getting a double play to erase the walk and then a strikeout to end the first inning. Miley would lock in after that, keeping the Yankees hitless through the first four innings.

The first hit for New York was a loud one, a two-out two-run home run in the bottom of the fifth to capitalize on a one-out walk earlier in the inning, giving the Yankees a 2-0 lead. After the offense tied the game in the top of the sixth, Miley went back to work in the bottom of the inning but would end up loading the bases on back-to-back walks then a single to start the inning.

Will Harris would come in to finish the sixth, but not before allowing a two-run single, charged to Miley. Miley's final line: 5 IP, 2 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 4 BB, 7 K, 1 HR.

2) Taking advantage of the short porch

With little offense happening through the early goings of the game, when the Yankees broke through first with their two-run home run in the fifth things looked bleak for Houston considering their recent struggles to get runners home. Josh Reddick gave the Astros a boost of momentum in the top of the sixth with a game-tying two-run home run of his own, but they'd quickly find themselves down again with the Yankees re-taking the lead in the bottom of the inning.

Houston would respond with arguably their best inning of offense in this series in the top of the seventh, getting back-to-back two-out singles from Alex Bregman and Michael Brantley before Yordan Alvarez delivered another great moment in his early career with a go-ahead three-run home run to the short porch in right field.

That gave the Astros a 5-4 lead, but it too would quickly be erased, and Houston would be unable to answer again despite getting the go-ahead run to the plate in the top of the ninth inning.

3) Pressly with a rare shaky inning

After Will Harris would watch the Yankees re-take the lead in the sixth, Ryan Pressly would meet the same fate in the seventh. With a 5-4 lead, Houston went to Ryan Pressly to try and hold down their one-run lead. Instead, Pressly would be unable to contain New York's lineup, allowing a one-out solo home run to tie the game 5-5 before later allowing a two-RBI single to put the Yankees back in front 7-5.

After stranding two runners in the top of the inning, the Astros looked to Reymin Guduan to keep the score at 7-5 in the bottom of the eighth, and he was able to do so with a little defensive help. That would end the night of pitching for Houston with the offense coming up empty in the top of the ninth, giving them their seventh loss in a row.

Up Next: Houston will wrap up this seven-game road trip with the series finale against New York tomorrow afternoon at 1:05 PM. The Astros will turn to their ace, Justin Verlander (9-3, 2.59 ERA) to get his tenth win of the season while the Yankees are expected to start J.A. Happ (7-3, 4.59 ERA).

The Astros daily report is presented by APG&E.

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FALCON POINTS

Astros scandal just the latest meaningless media frenzy, and we are all buying in

"Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing."

- William Shakespeare

You might wonder why there is a puppy picture on a story about the Astros scandal. This little beauty is my Dalmatian, Dynamo. Why is she here? To distract you. To dazzle you. Who doesn't love a puppy picture? Who cares if it has anything to do with the story? She made you look.

And the point is...

Sadly, that is the role of the media these days. Please listen to my rant. Please click on my story. Who cares if the headline isn't accurate? None of that matters. Look at me! I need likes and retweets!

The Astros cheating scandal is the latest story to be overblown, overanalyzed and overexposed. Why? Page views. Ratings. A failing media.

Exploring every angle

None of that is meant to excuse the team. Let's be honest; the Astros cheated. They will be punished, and they should. Draft picks, fines, suspensions. All are possible, and whatever they get is probably warranted.

And that is where the story should end. But that is not what the world is about anymore. It has to be endlessly debated. Pictures of a laptop on a table become the Zapruder film. There HAS to be a conspiracy. Every detail has to be debated. Which side you come down on depends on your biases.

Stupid takes

Some have even said the Astros should be stripped of their World Series title. This isn't college. It's a dumb, look at me take. It will never happen. This is not Avengers: Endgame where you can enter the quantum realm and change the past. It is real life, where events can't be changed. Did the cheating help them win? Who knows? You still have to hit the ball, even if you know what is coming. And it did not make a difference for the Astros pitchers. And harkening back to the steroid era, how do you know the other teams did not do it too and just did not get caught?

The big argument about PEDs was "oh, look at the big numbers the hitters put up." But how do you know the pitchers weren't doing it, too? The same goes here.

Truth is, you don't know. Which is why results can't and shouldn't be changed. Period. To suggest it is just dumb.

More stupid takes

On the Astros fan side, the defenses are just as silly. "They did nothing wrong. Where is your proof? Why aren't there other players coming forward?"

As an aside, let's not leave out the great misleading phrases. "Due diligence." (In other words, we know this is a bad idea, but we want to sound like we know what we are doing). "Witch hunt." (Yes, I am guilty, but this is how I deflect it).

As another aside, if you find an actual witch on your hunt, let me know. I always wanted to meet one.

They cheated. Period. And they will be punished. But the point is not that at all. It's to find every possible angle to get people to read and react. To care more about something than we should, when there are far more important things we should be riled up about. But you are being told to care, so you will keep clicking. It's the new normal, where reporters make themselves the stories and insert themselves into it. And that's why they turn stories like this into major issues. For their own benefit.

Nothing new

This is just the latest media distraction. The Patriots deflated balls saga was the most overplayed, overanalyzed scandal in sports history. Why was it so important? Because hot takes, web sites and analysts told us so. Many hinted at even bigger conspiracies. Why? Because we are a society dazzled by puppies.

Just this past weekend, the entire Colin Kaepernick story was over reported from all sides. The NFL was just doing a PR move. He just wants to be a martyr.

The NFL's waiver was broken down word by word.

Over a guy who hasn't played in three years.

The reason? He gets page views and clicks. And ratings. We keep getting told how important every aspect of the story is to our lives. In truth, it's just another distraction, a false narrative created to keep us dazzled and up in arms. Do we really care about these things? And if we do, what the hell is wrong with us?

Just like the Astros scandal. Is it a bad look? Of course. Are they guilty? Sure looks like it. But punish them and let's move on. We get it. They banged trashed cans. But punishment is never enough. People have to post pictures that might be something. Videos that might be something. Emails that might be something. Add it all up and it doesn't make things any worse. It just creates talking points. And people wonder why so many people consider the media - and social media, as the lines are completely blurred - "fake news."

In the end...

It's not fake news. It's misguided attempts to to keep us coming back for more. And too many of us fall into the trap. We are too distracted by everyone telling us these things are so important that we keep clicking. It takes on a life of its own, and then any theory is possible. Any conspiracy is possible. So we keep reading and digging and we are immersed in it. Look at this! Click on me! In a few weeks the Astros will be the most evil organization that ever lived and should be disbanded. And some of you will believe it and buy in, because that's how distractions work. And once we are distracted? We can believe anything.

Hence the picture of Dynamo. To distract you. By the way, did you notice one of her spots looks like Mickey Mouse? Let the Disney conspiracy begin. We shall start our own tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury.

And we all know what that signifies.

media fake news astros

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