Houston loses in Oakland
Astros drop opener to A's after late barrage against their bullpen
Sep 25, 2021, 12:30 am
The Astros suffered a lopsided loss to the A's on Friday after a late barrage against their bullpen. Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
The Astros suffered a lopsided loss to the A's on Friday after a late barrage against their bullpen.
After taking three of four against the Angels in Anaheim and getting a little help from Seattle, who swept Oakland in their four-game set, the Astros entered Friday's series opener with a magic number of 3. It would not move from there in this one, as the A's would destroy Houston's bullpen late in the game to hand them a lopsided loss.
Final Score: A's 14, Astros 2
Astros' Record: 91-63, first in the AL West
Winning Pitcher: Frankie Montas (13-9)
Losing Pitcher: Brandon Bielak (3-4)
Houston strikes first, but Oakland gets a big third off Bielak
Houston benefited from an error to start this series, with Jose Altuve reaching base and getting to third base. Yuli Gurriel would bring him home, getting a sac fly to put the Astros in front 1-0. Altuve scored against in the top of the third, this time doing it himself with a leadoff solo homer to start the frame and double the lead to 2-0.
No. 30 for Jose Altuve. š£#ForTheHĀ pic.twitter.com/l3J86b2wMX
ā Houston Astros (@astros) September 25, 2021
To that point, Brandon Bielak, who made the emergency start for Zack Greinke, who was a late scratch, had been able to keep Oakland at bay, erasing two singles in the first then tossing a 1-2-3 second. They got to him in the third, though, as back-to-back one-out walks proved costly as the A's would rip off two RBI singles and a sac fly to go in front 3-2 against him. He would finish that inning, but that would be it for him, with Houston moving on to the bullpen.
Astros drop the opener as Oakland breaks it open late
Peter Solomon, who was activated with Greinke landing on the IL, was the reliever who took over for Bielak starting in the bottom of the fourth. He was impressive, erasing singles in the fourth and sixth for three scoreless innings. Meanwhile, other than the homer by Altuve off of him, the Astros weren't able to get anything significant going against Frankie Montas, who made it through the seventh while maintaining the 3-2 advantage for Oakland, despite Houston getting the tying run on third with one out in the seventh.
Yimi Garcia was Houston's next reliever in the bottom of the seventh, but it was a rough inning for him, as he would give up two singles and a walk while getting one out before giving up a two-RBI double, giving Oakland insurance runs. Things spiraled incredibly out of control from there for Houston's bullpen, as Brooks Raley would come in to try and end the inning but instead allowed a grand slam to make it a 9-2 game.
It didn't get better for Seth Martinez in the bottom of the eighth, as he would also struggle as Oakland's offense continued to mash, giving up a bases-loaded walk, an RBI single, and a bases-clearing double to extend the A's lead to 14-2, putting things well out of reach. Despite loading the bases in the top of the ninth, the Astros would not get any closer, losing by twelve runs as their magic number stays stuck at 3.
Up Next: The middle game of this series will get underway at 3:07 PM Central on Saturday, and the expected pitching matchup is Sean Manaea (10-10, 4.05 ERA) for the A's and Framber Valdez (11-5, 3.07 ERA) for the Astros.
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Itās May 1, and the Astros are turning headsābut not for the reasons anyone expected. Their resurgence, driven not by stars like Yordan Alvarez or Christian Walker, but by a cast of less-heralded names, is writing a strange and telling early-season story.
Christian Walker, brought in to add middle-of-the-order thump, has yet to resemble the feared hitter he was in Arizona. Forget the narrative of a slow starterāheās never looked like this in April. Through March and April of 2025, heās slashing a worrying .196/.277/.355 with a .632 OPS. Compare that to the same stretch in 2024, when he posted a .283 average, .496 slug, and a robust .890 OPS, and it becomes clear: this is something more than rust. Even in 2023, his April numbers (.248/.714 OPS) looked steadier.
Whatās more troubling than the overall dip is when itās happening. Walker is faltering in the biggest moments. With runners in scoring position, heās hitting just .143 over 33 plate appearances, including 15 strikeouts. The struggles get even more glaring with two outsā.125 average, .188 slugging, and a .451 OPS in 19 such plate appearances. In ālate and closeā situations, when the pressureās highest, heās practically disappeared: 1-for-18 with a .056 average and a .167 OPS.
His patience has waned (only 9 walks so far, compared to 20 by this time last year), and for now, his presence in the lineup feels more like a placeholder than a pillar.
The contrast couldnāt be clearer when you look at JosĆ© Altuveālong the engine of this franchiseāwho, in 2024, delivered in the moments Walker is now missing. With two outs and runners in scoring position, Altuve hit .275 with an .888 OPS. In late and close situations, he thrived with a .314 average and .854 OPS. That kind of situational excellence is missing from this 2025 squadābut someone else may yet step into that role.
And yetāthe Astros are winning. Not because of Walker, but in spite of him.
Houstonās offense, in general, hasnāt lit up the leaderboard. Their team OPS ranks 23rd (.667), their slugging 25th (.357), and they sit just 22nd in runs scored (117). Theyāre 26th in doubles, a rare place for a team built on gap-to-gap damage.
But where thereās been light, it hasnāt come from the usual spots. Jeremy PeƱa, often overshadowed in a lineup full of stars, now boasts the teamās highest OPS at .791 (Isaac Paredes is second in OPS) and is flourishing in his new role as the leadoff hitter. PeƱaās balance of speed, contact, aggression, and timely power has given Houston a surprising tone-setter at the top.
Even more surprising: four Astros currently have more home runs than Yordan Alvarez.
And then thereās the pitchingāHoustonās anchor. The rotation and bullpen have been elite, ranking 5th in ERA (3.23), 1st in WHIP (1.08), and 4th in batting average against (.212). In a season where offense is lagging and clutch hits are rare, the arms have made all the difference.
For now, itās the unexpected contributors keeping Houston afloat. PeƱaās emergence. A rock-solid pitching staff. Role players stepping up in quiet but crucial ways. Theyāre not dominating, but theyāre grindingāand in a sluggish AL West, that may be enough.
Walker still has time to find his swing. He showed some signs of life against Toronto and Detroit. If he does, the Astros could become dangerous. If he doesnāt, the turnaround weāre witnessing will be credited to a new cast of unlikely faces. And maybe, thatās the story that needed to be written.
We have 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 āStros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday!
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