Astros' winning streak ends in a blowout
Astros daily report presented by APG&E: 3 hits from the 14-1 loss
Jun 5, 2019, 11:59 pm
Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images
With this west coast road-trip winding down, the Astros looked to stay perfect and lock up another series win by getting a win on Wednesday night. Here is how the game went down:
Final Score: Mariners 14, Astros 1.
Record: 42-21, first in the AL West.
Winning pitcher: Mike Leake (5-6, 4.30 ERA).
Losing pitcher: Brad Peacock (5-3, 3.20 ERA).
1) Rough fifth inning for Peacock
Brad Peacock was having a strong night through the first four innings, allowing just one walk and one hit over that span. The fifth inning would give him trouble, though, as he allowed a leadoff walk then back-to-back singles to load the bases with no outs.
He was able to bounce back and retire the next two batters, getting him an out of way from totally getting out of the jam, but instead allowed a two-out two-RBI single to give Seattle the 2-1 lead. He'd get the third out and that would be it for him. Peacock's final line: 5 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 6 K.
2) Mariners tee off against Guduan and Rodgers
With Peacock's night done, the Astros looked to Reymin Guduan to face the lefty-heavy part of the lineup in the sixth inning. Seattle would not go easy on him, getting a walk and two-run home run with one out to extend the lead to 4-1. Guduan would allow a single in the next at-bat before exiting in favor of Brady Rodgers.
Rodgers would also fall victim to Seattle's surging bats, giving up a two-run and three-run home run to make it a seven-run inning for the Mariners and put the game out of reach at 9-1. Rodgers was tasked with finishing the pitching night for Houston, but would not be able to accomplish that task, giving up four more runs in the eighth inning while getting just one out.
Tyler White (that's right, position player pitching) would take over and get the final two outs of the inning, but not without allowing a solo home run to make it 14-1 Seattle.
3) A lone run against Leake
Offensively for the Astros, they would be able to come out with just one run, a sacrifice fly by Tyler White in the first inning which had them up 1-0 until the fifth inning. Houston would get only six hits off of Mike Leake who would pitch the complete game while allowing just that one run.
Up Next: The Astros and Mariners will wrap up this four-game series with an afternoon game tomorrow at 2:40 PM. Houston will have their ace on the mound as Justin Verlander (9-2, 2.27 ERA) looks to continue his march up the all-time strikeout leaderboard, needing just five to pass up Mike Mussina for the 20th spot. Seattle will start Tommy Milone (1-1, 3.60 ERA).
The Astros daily report is presented by APG&E.
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The phrase most associated with the late former Oakland-Los Angeles-Oakland Raiders’ owner Al Davis was “Just win baby.” One has to think Al would strongly approve of the Houston Astros. Going to the fifth inning Sunday against the Mariners the Astros were facing a 3-0 deficit and staring at the prospect of being swept out of Seattle and having their American League West division lead slashed to just two games. Now after roaring from behind with 11 unanswered runs to take the series finale in the Emerald City, and then sweeping three games from the Diamondbacks in Phoenix, the Astros stand six games up with 60 games to go. So, if the Astros play just .500 ball the rest of the way (which would have them finish with 90 victories), the Mariners have to play .600 ball to catch them. If somehow the Astros are to maintain their season long win pace to the finish line they’d close with 95 wins, and the race is already over unless someone thinks the M’s are poised to uncork a finishing kick of 41-19 or better. It’s quite a pleasing perch from which the Astros survey the standings. Coupled with the freefalling Detroit Tigers having dropped nine of their last ten games, the Astros amazingly start this homestand sporting the best record in the entire American League. On the homestand they follow four games against the team with the second-worst record in the American League (Athletics) with three versus the team with the second-worst record in the National League (Nationals). I know, I know. There is fear of the Astros playing down to the competition, but that is not the way to look at it. A bad Major League team can beat a good team in a series at any time. If it happens it happens, but it wouldn’t mean it happened only because the Astros didn’t take their opponent seriously. This isn’t the NBA.
Trade deadline looming
Of course, It hasn’t been all good news with Isaac Paredes badly injuring a hamstring Sunday. Paredes could be back in three weeks (doubtful), he could miss the rest of the season. GET WELL SOON JEREMY PENA! Lance McCullers’s latest Injured List stint could be considered addition by subtraction for the Astros’ starting rotation. Whether impacted by his blister issue, Lance was lousy in four of his last five starts. So, one week from the trade deadline, if general manager Dana Brown has the ammo to get one deal done, where does he make the upgrade? The left-handed hitter everyone knows the Astros can use regardless of Yordan Alvarez’s status is a natural priority. With the Astros’ weak farm system it would seem difficult for Brown to put forth the winning offer for the top bats that could be in play. That probably rings even truer now, since if he wasn’t already untouchable, Brice Matthews may have cemented untouchable status by darn near winning the first two games of the Diamondbacks series by himself. Matthews is going to struggle mightily to hit for a good average if he can’t make notable improvement in the contact department, but the power is obvious, as is the athleticism in the field. The 23-year-old Matthews and 22-year-old Cam Smith (though presently mired in a three for 36 slump) are the clear (and right now only) two young shining beacons for the lineup’s future.
You can't have enough pitching
While Brandon Walter has been a revelation, a starting pitcher would make sense unless the decision is to hope Spencer Arrighetti and/or Cristian Javier can contribute meaningfully upon return to the big leagues, likely sometime next month. Going after a reliever or two may make more sense in terms of availability and transaction cost. Overall the Astros’ bullpen has been excellent, but Bryan Abreu is the only trustworthy right-handed option for Joe Espada. Back to Walter. Barely two months ago no way Walter himself would have believed he’d be where he is now. Nine starts since being summoned basically out of desperation, Walter has a 3.35 earned run average, and a stunning 13 to one strikeout-to-walk ratio with his 52 strikeouts against a measly four walks allowed in 53 2/3 innings. Walter has pitched fabulously in seven of his nine starts. He only has two wins, but that’s because in five of the six Walter starts the Astros didn’t win the game they failed to score more than two runs. Walter turns 29 years old in September. His only prior big league experience was 23 innings in relief with a 6.26 ERA for the Red Sox two years ago. The Bosox released him last August, the Astros signed him basically as minor league depth. Look at him (and the Astros) now.
For Astro-centric conversation, join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!
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