Verlander throws a gem in Astros win
Astros daily report presented by APG&E: 2 hits from the 5-1 win
After taking the first game of the series against the White Sox, the Astros had Justin Verlander on the mound Tuesday night to make it two in a row. Here are the quick results of the game and two hits:
Final Score: Astros 5, White Sox 1.
Record: 33-16, first in the AL West.
Winning pitcher: Justin Verlander (8-1, 2.24 ERA).
Losing pitcher: Dylan Covey (0-3, 5.31 ERA).
1) Vintage Verlander
Justin Verlander was spectacular on Tuesday night, and in fact, took a no-hitter into the seventh inning. Over the first six innings, he allowed just a walk while striking out ten. The no-hit bid was broken in the top of the seventh on a solo home run, but that didn't stop Verlander from having an incredible night. He'd complete eight innings during which he allowed only the one hit and run while striking out 12. The win moved him to 8-1 on the season and lowered his ERA to 2.24. Hector Rondon took over for the ninth and threw a scoreless inning to wrap up the win.
2) Big fifth inning of offense
After both teams going scoreless through the first three innings, Yuli Gurriel finally got Houston on the board with a solo home run in the bottom of the fourth. The big offensive inning of the night, was the fifth, though, with the Astros putting up four runs on a wild pitch an RBI-single from Carlos Correa and a big two-RBI double from Michael Brantley.
Up Next: Game three of this four-game set will get underway with another 7:10 PM start on Wednesday night. Houston will send the league leader in strikeouts, Gerrit Cole (4-4, 3.56 ERA), to the mound to match up against Ivan Nova (2-4, 7.42 ERA) for Chicago.
The Astros daily report is presented by APG&E.