Astros take series from Royals in a blowout
Astros daily report presented by APG&E: 3 hits from the 9-0 win
May 8, 2019, 9:55 pm
Astros take series from Royals in a blowout
The Astros looked to put the disaster of Tuesday night behind them and get the series win with a victory on Wednesday night against the Royals. Here are some quick facts and three hits from the game:
Final Score: Astros 9, Royals 0
Record: 22-15, first in the AL West.
Winning pitcher: Brad Peacock (3-2, 4.30 ERA)
Losing pitcher: Jorge Lopez (0-4, 6.07 ERA)
The Astros enacted their revenge on the Royals from the night before with a big offensive night of their own. It started with Houston's first batter of the night as George Springer led off the bottom of the first with a solo home run. They struck again in the third, putting together a five-run inning on a couple of sac flies from Alex Bregman and Aledmys Diaz, a solo home run from Carlos Correa, and a two-run home run by Michael Brantley. Brantley made it back-to-back innings and at-bats with a home run, coming up big again in the fourth with a solo home run to extend the lead to 7-0.
They were at it again in the bottom of the fifth, getting an RBI groundout from Max Stassi then sacrifice fly from Springer to extend the lead to 9-0.
Peacock had his slider working and in control in this start, allowing just two baserunners through the first four innings. He got into some trouble in the top of the fifth, loading the bases with one out, but would get out of it with back-to-back strikeouts to end the inning. He bounced back from that with two more dominant innings, completing seven shutout frames. Peacock's final line: 7 innings pitched, 0 runs, 3 hits, 1 walk, and a career-high 12 strikeouts.
With Peacock's night done after seven fantastic innings, Josh James took over in the eighth and worked around a leadoff walk to keep the shutout going into the ninth. In the ninth, he hit a batter but still completed the shutout with another scoreless inning, giving him two innings of work with a walk, hit batter, and five strikeouts.
Up Next: The Astros will stay here in Houston with a four-game series against the rival Rangers starting tomorrow night. First pitch is at 7:10 PM and will feature Wade Miley (2-2, 3.20 ERA) for Houston on the mound opposite of Mike Minor (3-2, 2.40 ERA) for the Rangers.
The Astros daily report is presented by APG&E.
The Houston Texans have a big challenge in store as they look to start the season with a win against the Colts this Sunday. When these two teams met in Week 2 last year, the Colts dominated the Texans, despite losing their QB Anthony Richardson to a concussion after the first quarter.
Keeping Richardson contained on Sunday will go a long way in increasing the Texans' chances of coming home with a win. The Texans defense will have their hands full containing the Colts backs and tight ends in the passing game.
Scoring touchdowns with their wide receivers could prove difficult, as the Texans allowed the second-fewest TDs (10) to the receiver position in 2023.
Limiting running back Jonathan Taylor will also be a top priority. While the Texans had an elite defense against the run last season, they struggled with Taylor in Week 18 as he almost rushed for 200 yards.
Houston's D allowed only four carries to running backs in 2023 that went for 20 or more yards. Two of which were to Taylor in the final game of the regular season.
Finally, DeMeco Ryans and company have to find a way to get pressure on the QB. They only had one QB hit and zero sacks on Richardson and Garner Minshew the first time they faced off last year.
On offense, the Texans have two big x-factors to watch for on Sunday. The offensive line that suited up to play the Colts in Week 2 last season is completely different from this year.
The o-line was ravaged with injuries to start the 2023 campaign, so we expect a big jump in productivity in the trenches this year.
Another big addition in 2024 is the presence of running back Joe Mixon. The running game only produced 2 yards per rush in Week 2 against Indy last year, so there's clearly room for improvement.
Be sure to watch the video above for our in-depth preview of Texans-Colts!
And catch Texans on Tap (a Texans podcast) live on our SportsMapTexans YouTube channel following every game this season!