Astros get win number 50 on the season

Astros daily report presented by APG&E: 2 hits from the 5-1 win

Chris Campise
Jun 25, 2019, 9:07 pm
Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images

After a day off on Monday to celebrate putting an end to their losing streak on Sunday, the Astros were back home in Houston on Tuesday night to face the Pirates. It also marked the return of George Springer to the lineup, getting them one step closer to being a fully-healthy roster. Here is how the series opener went:

Final Score: Astros 5, Pirates 1.

Record: 50-30, first in the AL West.

Winning pitcher: Gerrit Cole (7-5, 3.42 ERA).

Losing pitcher: Trevor Williams (2-2, 4.25 ERA).

1) Return of Springer

The Astros had to be thrilled to have one of their best sluggers back in the lineup in George Springer on Tuesday night. Springer would resume his spot as the leadoff hitter, but it would be Yuli Gurriel who made the first splash on offense. After a leadoff double by Alex Bregman to start the fourth, Gurriel would deliver a two-out two-run home run to give Houston a 2-0 lead.

After the Pirates trimmed the lead to one run in the top of the sixth, Houston answered immediately with a solo home run by Alex Bregman to leadoff the bottom of the inning, putting the lead back at two runs at 3-1. Josh Reddick led off the bottom of the seventh with a double, tagged ahead to third on a fly out, then scored on a sac fly from Robinson Chirinos to extend the lead to 4-0. Springer would end up getting his first hit later in that same inning but would be left stranded.

Alex Bregman notched his third hit of the night by leading the bottom of the eighth off with a single. He'd advance to third base after a couple of wild pitches, then scored on an RBI-double by Yordan Alvarez, extending the lead to 5-1.

2) Cole throws six and allows one run

Although it wasn't a typical strikeout-filled start for Gerrit Cole, he still managed to make it a solid night. Cole, with a little help from another homer-robbing catch from Josh Reddick, didn't allow a run until the end of his game, giving up a two-out RBI-single in the top of the sixth to bring the Pirates within a run at 2-1. He would get the last out of that inning, bringing his final line to 6 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 0 HR.

That left it up to the bullpen to complete the final three innings. Josh James came in for the seventh and retired Pittsburgh in order including two strikeouts. Will Harris was next out, and thanks to a couple of great defensive plays was able to record a quick 1-2-3 inning. Collin McHugh, also making his return from the IL today along with George Springer, pitched his first inning of work and was able to get a scoreless inning to secure Houston's 50th win of the year.

Up Next: Houston and Pittsburgh will continue this series with game two tomorrow at 7:10 PM. The Pirates have not yet announced their starter, but the Astros will send Framber Valdez (3-3, 3.61 ERA) to the mound for another start, and will try to rebound from his rough outing in New York this past weekend.

The Astros daily report is presented by APG&E.

SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome

Listen Live

Astros finish the series with a win

Astros daily report presented by APG&E: 3 hits from the 6-2 win

Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images

With an overpowering win on Wednesday night, the Astros went into the series finale on Thursday night hoping to split the series and travel back to Houston on a good note. Here is how the game went:

Final Score: Astros 6, Angels 2.

Record: 61-37, first in the AL West.

Winning pitcher: Wade Miley (8-4, 3.25 ERA).

Losing pitcher: Matt Harvey (3-5, 7.09 ERA).

1) Bats stay hot

Houston's offense provided another significant lead early in Thursday night's game, getting two two-out walks in the top of the first to set up a two-RBI double by Yordan Alvarez to take an immediate 2-0 lead. They followed that up with a three-run third inning, including RBIs from Josh Reddick and Yuli Gurriel along with a solo home run by George Springer.

Alex Bregman extended the lead in the fifth, getting a solo home run of his own to make it a 6-0 lead. They would ride those six runs all the way to the end to the victory.

2) Miley with a decent start

Wade Miley had an excellent start to his night, getting through the first four innings without allowing a hit with just a couple of walks. He allowed the first hit to the Angels in the fifth, but would not allow a run until the sixth.

In the bottom of the sixth, Miley would have his worst inning of the evening, allowing a couple of hits which paired with an error would end up putting the Angels in position to trim the lead to 6-2. Will Harris came in to finish off the inning.

Still, it was a decent night for Miley, and with the early offense behind him, he was able to leave in line for the win. His final line: 5.1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3K, 0 HR.

3) Bullpen finishes off the series split

After Harris finished off the sixth for Miley, the seventh belonged to Collin McHugh. Mchugh worked around a one-out double, keeping it at 6-2 heading to the eighth.

Ryan Pressly took over for his usual eighth-inning role, and he was able to work around a leadoff double by Mike Trout by retiring the next three batters to send things to the ninth. Roberto Osuna came in for the ninth and recorded the final three outs, despite a two-out triple, to complete the win.

Up Next: The Astros will take a late-night flight back to Houston tonight to start a weekend three-game series with the Rangers beginning on Friday night. The series opener will be at 7:10 PM tomorrow and it the expected pitching matchup is Mike Minor (8-4, 2.73 ERA) for the Rangers going up against Houston's ace, Justin Verlander (11-4, 2.98 ERA).

The Astros daily report is presented by APG&E.

SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome