Astros take first of four against Chicago
Astros daily report presented by APG&E: 3 hits from the 3-0 win
May 20, 2019, 9:51 pm
Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images
Back at home for ten games, the Astros looked to start the long homestand with a win over the White Sox to start their four-game series. Here's a recap of Monday night's game:
Final Score: Astros 3, White Sox 0
Record: 32-16, first in the AL West.
Winning pitcher: Brad Peacock (5-2, 3.59 ERA).
Losing pitcher: Ryan Burr (1-1, 3.86 ERA).
1) Peacock with five strong innings in win
Brad Peacock threw his third consecutive start with one run or less, holding the White Sox scoreless over five innings of work. He looked on track to go longer, but a long fifth inning ended his night early. Peacock's final line: 5 innings, 0 runs, 2 hits, 2 walks, and an impressive 9 strikeouts.
2) Bullpen tasked with four more innings
Despite Peacock having a strong outing, it was still only five innings, resulting in the bullpen being asked to cover four innings to close out the win. Chris Devenski pitched a scoreless sixth by working around a two-out single, then Will Harris worked around two two-out singles for a scoreless seventh.
Ryan Pressly took over in the eighth, and to no surprise provided yet another scoreless inning. In the ninth, Roberto Osuna converted his twelfth save of the season to complete the shutout.
3) Three runs is enough
With the White Sox held scoreless by Houston, the Astros didn't need much offense to get the job done on Monday night. Carlos Correa hit what would be the eventual winning run on a sac fly in the bottom of the first, putting Houston up 1-0. They added two insurance runs, both on solo homers, one by Jake Marisnick in the third and the other by Tyler White in the fourth, his first of the year.
Up Next: The Astros and White Sox will get game two of this series underway tomorrow night at 7:10 PM. Houston will have their ace, Justin Verlander (7-1, 2.38 ERA), on the mound to pitch opposite of Dylan Covey (0-2, 4.41 ERA) for Chicago.
The Astros daily report is presented by APG&E.
What looked like a minor blip after an emotional series win in Los Angeles has turned into something more concerning for the Houston Astros.
Swept at home by a Guardians team that came in riding a 10-game losing streak, the Astros were left looking exposed. Not exhausted, as injuries, underperformance, and questionable decision-making converged to hand Houston one of its most frustrating series losses of the year.
Depth finally runs dry
It would be easy to point to a “Dodger hangover” as the culprit, the emotional peak of an 18-1 win at Chavez Ravine followed by a mental lull. But that’s not the story here.
Houston’s energy was still evident, especially in the first two games of the series, where the offense scored five or more runs each time. Including those, the Astros had reached that mark in eight of their last 10 games heading into Wednesday’s finale.
But scoring isn’t everything, not when a lineup held together by duct tape and desperation is missing Christian Walker and Jake Meyers and getting critical at-bats from Cooper Hummel, Zack Short, and other journeymen.
The lack of depth finally showed. The Astros, for three days, looked more like a Triple-A squad with Jose Altuve and a couple big-league regulars sprinkled in.
Cracks in the pitching core
And the thing that had been keeping this team afloat, elite pitching, finally buckled.
Hunter Brown and Josh Hader, both dominant all season, finally cracked. Brown gave up six runs in six innings, raising his pristine 1.82 ERA to 2.21. Hader wasn’t spared either, coughing up a game-losing grand slam in extra innings that inflated his ERA from 1.80 to 2.38 in one night.
But the struggles weren’t isolated. Bennett Sousa, Kaleb Ort, and Steven Okert each gave up runs at critical moments. The bullpen’s collective fade could not have come at a worse time for a team already walking a tightrope.
Injury handling under fire
Houston’s injury management is also drawing heat, and rightfully so. Jake Meyers, who had been nursing a calf strain, started Wednesday’s finale. He didn’t even make it through one pitch before aggravating the injury and needing to be helped off the field.
No imaging before playing him. No cautionary rest despite the All-Star break looming. Just a rushed return in a banged-up lineup, and it backfired immediately.
Second-guessing has turned to outright criticism of the Astros’ medical staff, as fans and analysts alike wonder whether these mounting injuries are being made worse by how the club is handling them.
Pressure mounts on Dana Brown
All eyes now turn to Astros GM Dana Brown. The Astros are limping into the break with no clear reinforcements on the immediate horizon. Only Chas McCormick is currently rehabbing in Sugar Land. Everyone else? Still sidelined.
Brown will need to act — and soon.
At a minimum, calling up top prospect Brice Matthews makes sense. He’s been mashing in Triple-A (.283/.400/.476, 10 HR, .876 OPS) and could play second base while Jose Altuve shifts to left field more regularly. With Mauricio Dubón stretched thin between shortstop and center, injecting Matthews’ upside into the infield is a logical step.
*Editor's note: The Astros must be listening, Matthews was called up Thursday afternoon!
The Astros are calling up Brice Matthews, their top prospect on @MLBPipeline
via @brianmctaggart pic.twitter.com/K91cGKkcx6
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) July 10, 2025
There’s also trade chatter, most notably about Orioles outfielder Cedric Mullins, but excitement has been tepid. His numbers don’t jump off the page, but compared to who the Astros are fielding now, Mullins would be a clear upgrade and a much-needed big-league presence.
A final test before the break
Before the All-Star reset, Houston gets one last chance to stabilize the ship, and it comes in the form of a rivalry series against the Texas Rangers. The Astros will send their top trio — Lance McCullers Jr., Framber Valdez, and Hunter Brown — to the mound for a three-game set that will test their resolve, their health, and perhaps their postseason aspirations.
The Silver Boot is up for grabs. So is momentum. And maybe, clarity on just how far this version of the Astros can go.
There's so much more to discuss! Don't miss the video below as we examine the topics above and much, much more!
The MLB season is finally upon us! Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday.
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