Houston's bullpen woes continue
Astros' pitching implodes as Mariners complete improbable comeback
Jul 27, 2021, 1:07 am
Houston's bullpen woes continue
Despite a big lead given by their offense, Houston's pitching couldn't keep it in a major implosion on Monday in Seattle.
After capping off a 5-1 homestand with a three-game sweep of the Rangers, the Astros picked up on the road Monday night in Seattle. After taking a large early lead, it looked like Houston might cruise to the win, but the Mariners had other plans, causing a collapse by Houston's pitching to make the improbable comeback.
Final Score: Mariners 11, Astros 8
Astros' Record: 61-40, first in the AL West
Winning Pitcher: Kendall Graveman (4-0)
Losing Pitcher: Ryne Stanek (1-2)
.@KTuck30 with a 3-run home run! đŁ#ForTheH pic.twitter.com/PZ8HQLowOs
â Houston Astros (@astros) July 27, 2021
Houston came out firing against Seattle's young starting pitcher, Darren McCaughan, making his first career start and second appearance. It all came with one out, with two reaching base before an RBI single by Yordan Alvarez, an RBI double by Carlos Correa, then back-to-back homers by Kyle Tucker, a three-run blast, and Abraham Toro, a solo homer to make it 6-0 before the Mariners could reach the plate.
That provided Luis Garcia plenty of run support to work with, and through the first three innings, it looked as though the Mariners would have a tough time getting on the board against him. After allowing a leadoff single in the bottom of the first, he induced a double play en route to retiring nine in a row to face the minimum through three frames. After a Martin Maldonado solo homer in the top of the fourth to extend the lead to 7-0, Seattle bounced back in the bottom of the fourth, loading the bases with one out to set up a bases-clearing double to cut the score to 7-3.
Maldonado got one of those back in the top of the fifth, hitting an RBI single, but Garcia's struggles continued in the bottom of the fifth. Seattle put two on base via singles, and with two outs, Kyle Seager would make it a two-run game with a three-run blast to make it 8-6, ending Garcia's day. Bryan Abreu entered and notched the final out of the frame, finalizing Garcia's line: 4.2 IP, 6 H, 6 R, 5 ER, 1 BB, 9 K, 1 HR, 87 P.
After finishing the fifth for Garcia, Abreu remained in the game for Houston but would see a one-out walk come back to bite him, with the Mariners getting within a run with a two-out RBI single to make it 8-7. That prompted Dusty Baker to move on to Blake Taylor, who would get a strikeout to finish the inning. Taylor continued in the bottom of the seventh and was able to sit down the Mariners in order to retire four in a row to send the game to the eighth.
After trailing 7-0, the @Mariners now lead 11-8! đŽ pic.twitter.com/mWXVZzlgyB
â MLB (@MLB) July 27, 2021
Still holding on to the one-run lead in the bottom of the eighth, Houston moved on to Ryne Stanek, but he would put two on while getting two outs before Dusty Baker had to play a lefty matchup to bring in Brooks Raley. Raley would not maintain the lead, issuing a walk to load the bases then giving up a go-ahead grand slam to give Seattle their first lead, three runs at 11-8. The Astros would go scoreless in the top of the ninth, dropping the opener to the Mariners, who completed the comeback.
Up Next: The middle game of this series between the Astros and Mariners will be another late 9:10 PM Central start on Tuesday. Houston will hand the ball to Lance McCullers Jr. (7-2, 3.04 ERA), while Seattle is expected to send Chris Flexen (9-4, 3.35 ERA) to the mound.
If the Astros were going to win one series and lose the other on their six-game road trip out of the All-Star break, they got it right in taking two out of three games at Seattle then losing two out of three to lousy Oakland. Had they inverted those results, the Astros would not be alone atop the American League West starting this weekendâs series against the Dodgers at Minute Maid Park.
By the schedule the Astrosâ sledding now gets tougher. The Dodgers are rolling toward their 11th National League West crown in 12 years, despite their pitching staff having been battered by injuries every bit as much as the Astrosâ. The Astros will face three rookie starters this weekend. National League Rookie of the Year candidate (non-Paul Skenes division) Gavin Stone goes Friday. Saturday itâs Justin Wrobleski making his fourth big league start, Sunday River Ryan makes his second. 325 million dollar addition Yoshinobu Yamamoto last pitched June 15. Tony Gonsolin is out for the year without throwing a pitch. Clayton Kershawâs first pitch Thursday marks the first of his season. Tyler Glasnowâs Wednesday return from the Injured List means the Astros wonât face him this weekend.
Aside: Astrosâ fan favorite Joe Kelly is back in the Dodgersâ bullpen. He was activated from the IL out of the break, so the opportunity to welcome him back to Minute Maid Park looms!
After the Dodgers, the Pirates hit town with Skenes slated to pitch Monday opposite Jake Bloss. Gulp. Hey, in one game, you never know. Skenes has been the most electric rookie pitcher since Dwight Gooden with the Mets in 1984.
Sleepless in Seattle
The Marinersâ unraveling has reached historic proportions. Itâs not easy losing six straight matchups with the lowly Angels but the Mariners were down to the challenge and pulled it off. The Mâs have stumble-bummed their way to a 9-20 record over their last 29 games. Thatâs actually a better winning percentage than the Astrosâ had after staggering from the starting gate to a 7-19 mark. Like the Astros did, the Mariners can right their ship, though if they donât add quality offense before Tuesdayâs trade deadline it seems unlikely. Seattle has scored more than two runs in one of its last eight games, the only win among those eight when the Mariners got to Ronel Blanco and Seth Martinez Sunday to avoid an Astrosâ sweep. Meanwhile, the Texas Rangers whipping up on the laughingstock Chicago White Sox this week has their World Series title defense very much alive and a threat to overtake both the Astros and Mariners.
The trade deadline is this Tuesday
Tick-tock toward Tuesdayâs 5PM Central Time trade deadline. General Manager Dana Brown is on the clock. Letâs start with starting pitchers. Tarik Skubal! Garrett Crochet! Jack Flaherty! Any would be a fabulous addition. If Brown acquires one, he will have done phenomenal work cajoling the trade partner into thinking the Astrosâ offer the best. Frankly it seems impossible. The Orioles are in the starting pitcher market. Their farm system runs laps around what the Astros have. Numerous other teams on the hunt for pitching have higher rated minor league talent. The Triple-A Sugar Land Space Cowboys are having a fabulous season, but until the Astros Thursday moved up soon to be 24-year-old Jacob Melton (who was batting just .248 with a .307 on-base percentage at Double-A Corpus Christi) there was not one non-pitcher of any consequence younger than 25 on the roster. Pedro Leon, Shay Whitcomb, Will Wagner, and include Joey Loperfido: it would be shocking if any of them can be the best player in an offer good enough to land one of the potential big trade fish. All four of them wouldnât be enough to land a Skubal or Crochet.
On the hitter side, if the Blue Jays shop Vlad Jr. and/or the Rays take offers for Paredes, of course Brown better try. Either would be a sharp upgrade over Jon Singleton, and Guerrero canât become a free agent until after next season, with Paredes under team control through 2027. Reality check time. Seattleâs offense is in dire straits. The Mariners have four prospects rated higher than any Astrosâ prospect. If the Mariners didnât make a winning offer over what the Astros proposed, Seattle GM Jerry Dipoto would look like a timid clown.
That said, there will be several second and third tier starters and relievers moved who would boost the Astros. If Spencer Arrighetti and Jake Bloss are both still in the Astrosâ starting rotation after the deadline, Dana Brown will have failed. That said, the Astros could well stand pat and win the Mild, Mild West. They could also finish third.
Go for the gold!
With the Olympics underway, a medal podium-style ranking of the Astrosâ greatest trade deadline acquisitions:
No medal but cannot be omitted: Randy Johnson. It was a brief fling with âThe Big Unitâ in 1998 but it was spectacular. It elevated Houston as a baseball city. In 11 regular season starts Johnson went 10-1 with a 1.28 earned run average. He threw shutouts in his first four Astrodome starts. He spiked attendance like no other player in franchise history. Even though the San Diego Padres beat Johnson twice (Johnson pitched fine, the Astros scored two runs total in the two games) and bounced the Astros in a National League Division Series, and prospects Freddy Garcia and Carlos Guillen included in the deal both went on to have excellent careers, it was a trade that in hindsight you make 100 times out of 100.
Bronze: Jeff Bagwell. Reliever Larry Andersen was outstanding in helping the Boston Red Sox win the AL East in 1990, but the BoSox got swept in the ALCS and Andersen left as a free agent. Bagwell has the greatest offensive resume in Astrosâ history (I know, I know, postseason aside) and is quite arguably one of the 10 greatest first basemen of all-time.
Silver: Yordan Alvarez. He has longevity to prove but to this point in his career, while not the all-around player Bagwell was, Yordan is clearly the more destructive force in the batterâs box. Throw in his three monstrously significant home runs in the 2022 Astrosâ title run, and his awesome 2023 postseason, and what could still lie ahead for him and the Gold could be his if we revisit this topic 10 years from now. Imagine the Dodgers if they hadnât gifted Yordan to the Astros for Josh Fields.
Gold: Justin Verlander. Astrosâ World Series championships pre-JV, zero. With him, two. Even though his World Series resume is terrible. The finishing piece to the Astrosâ initial championship winner in 2017 with a 1.06 ERA in five starts ahead of winning the 2017 ALCS MVP, a second crown in 2022, two Cy Young Awards and a Cy runner-up. Interesting decision to make for the cap on his Hall of Fame plaque. Much more body of work with the Tigers but the championships and legend cemented with the Astros.
*Catch our weekly Stone Cold âStros podcast. Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and I discuss varied Astros topics. The first post for the week generally goes up Monday afternoon (second part released Tuesday) via The SportsMap HOU YouTube channel or listen to episodes in their entirety at Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.