Houston lost three of four
Astros drop finale to Twins as Minnesota takes the series
Aug 8, 2021, 5:23 pm
Houston's offense once again came up short of the Twins on Sunday, dropping three of four in the series. Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images
Houston's offense once again came up short of the Twins on Sunday, dropping three of four in the series.
After rebounding out of their three-game losing streak with a win on Saturday, the Astros tried to work a series split with another victory on Sunday. Instead, the Twins would once again hand them disappointment, handing Houston another loss.
Final Score: Twins 7, Astros 5
Astros' Record: 66-46, first in the AL West
Winning Pitcher: Kenta Maeda (5-4)
Losing Pitcher: Lance McCullers Jr. (9-3)
Houston strikes first before Twins get to McCullers Jr.
After a scoreless top half of the inning by Lance McCullers Jr., the Astros plated a run in the bottom of the first. They put the first two runners on base on a single and a walk, setting up an RBI single by Aledmyz Diaz to take a 1-0 lead. The twins responded quickly, getting that run back to tie the game in the top of the second on a two-out RBI single. McCullers Jr. rebounded with a scoreless third, but in the fourth, issued a leadoff walk which proved costly with a two-run homer in the next at-bat to put Minnesota ahead 3-1.
Despite allowing two singles, he finished that inning and received a run from his offense on an RBI single by Taylor Jones in the bottom half but was met with a leadoff solo homer in the top of the fifth to give it right back. He would get two outs while loading the bases on a single, walk, and hit by pitch, leaving with two outs as Dusty Baker would bring in Phil Maton to finish the inning. His final line: 4.2 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 4 K, 2 HR, 89 P.
Twins expand their lead
Houston crept back into it in the bottom of the fifth, getting a runner on third to set up an RBI single by Yordan Alvarez to make it a one-run game at 4-3. Minnesota quickly took back the momentum, putting up a single and a walk against Maton before a three-run homer put them firmly back in front 7-3. Maton would face just one more batter before Blake Taylor would enter to try and finish the frame, which he would do by stranding the bases loaded after allowing two singles and a walk but escaping damage.
First @MLB hit? How 'bout a 2B! 🤘@jake_meyers4 | #ForTheH pic.twitter.com/VwVT07PWXN
— Houston Astros (@astros) August 8, 2021
Rafael Montero took over in the top of the seventh, tossing the first 1-2-3 inning of the day for Houston. The Astros tried starting a rally in the bottom of the seventh, getting Jake Meyer's first MLB hit on a two-out double, followed by an RBI double by Aledmys Diaz to cut the lead to 7-4. Montero remained in the game in the top of the eighth, getting two outs and allowing a walk before experiencing an injury that would take him out of the game. Yimi Garcia made the quick entry and finished off the frame.
Astros lose the series
Carlos Correa got his team another run closer, leading the bottom of the eighth off with a solo homer to make it 7-5. With two outs, Dusty Baker went to his bench, using Jose Altuve to pinch-hit who, to that point, had the day off. Altuve worked a walk to bring the tying run to the plate, another pinch hitter, Jason Castro, who struck out to end the inning. After a 1-2-3 top of the ninth by Garcia, the Astros would come up empty in the bottom of the inning, dropping three of four to the Twins to lose the series.
Up Next: Houston will enjoy a day off on Monday before the Rockies come to Houston for a two-game series starting Wednesday at 7:10 PM Central. In the opener, the expected pitching matchup is Jon Gray (7-7, 3.67 ERA) for Colorado and Jake Odorizzi (4-6, 4.95 ERA) for the Astros.
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With the Astros now officially ten games under .500 for the season, manager Joe Espada is taking a lot of heat from the fanbase for the team's struggles.
While we don't agree with the sentiment, we even hear fans clamoring for the return of Dusty Baker and Martin Maldonado, thinking the Astros wouldn't be in this mess if they were still here.
Which is ridiculous. First of all, Maldonado has been awful for the White Sox, hitting .048 (even worse than Jose Abreu's .065). And for those of you that think his work with the pitching staff justifies his pathetic offense. Let me say this: Where was Maldy's game calling genius for Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, and Framber Valdez last year? All of them regressed significantly.
And as far as Baker is concerned, we have no idea how much a difference he would make, we can only speculate. Baker would also be dealing with a pitching staff ravaged with injuries. And let's not forget, Baker was the guy that refused to move Jose Abreu down in the batting order, even though he would finish the regular season with the ninth-worst OPS in baseball.
The reality of the situation is managers can only do so much in baseball. Which leads us to something else that needs to be considered. Is Espada being handcuffed by the front office? Espada and GM Dana Brown both said recently that Jon Singleton was going to get more at-bats while they give Abreu time off to try to figure things out. Yet, there Abreu was in the lineup again in the opening game of the Cubs series.
It makes us wonder how much power does Espada truly have? The Astros have some other options at first base. Yainer Diaz may only have eight games played at the position, but how much worse could he be than Abreu defensively? Abreu already has four errors, and Diaz is obviously a way better hitter. Victor Caratini isn't considered a plus offensive player, but his .276 batting average makes him look like Babe Ruth compared to Abreu. Let him catch more often and play Diaz at first. Starting Diaz at first more often could also lengthen his career long-term.
Maybe that's too wild of a move. Okay, fine. How about playing Mauricio Dubon at first base? I understand he doesn't have much experience at that position, but what's the downside of trying him there? If he can play shortstop, he can play first base. He's driving in runs at a higher rate (11 RBIs) than everyone on the team outside of Kyle Tucker and Yordan Alvarez. And he's producing like that as part-time player right now.
The other criticism we see of Espada is his use of Jon Singleton to pinch hit late in games. Let's be real, though, who else does Espada have on the roster to go to? Batting Abreu late in games in which you're trailing should be considered malpractice. Espada can only use who he has to work with. This all really stems from the Astros poor farm system.
They don't have anyone else to turn to. The draft picks the club lost from the sign-stealing scandal are really hurting them right now. First and second rounders from 2020 and 2021 should be helping you in 2024 at the big league level.
Maybe they go to Astros prospect Joey Loperfido soon, but after a hot start he has only two hits in his last six games.
Finally, we have to talk about what seems like a committee making baseball decisions. Lost in a committee is accountability. Who gets the blame for making poor decisions?
As time continues to pass it looks like moving on from former GM James Click was a massive mistake. He's the guy that didn't sign Abreu, but did trade Myles Straw (recently DFA'd) for Yainer Diaz and Phil Maton. He also built an elite bullpen without breaking the bank, and helped the club win a World Series in 2022.
The reality of the situation is Dusty Baker and James Click are not walking back through that door. And all good runs come to an end at some point. Is this what we're witnessing?
Don't miss the video above as we hit on all the points discussed and much more!
Catch Stone Cold 'Stros (an Astros podcast) with Charlie Pallilo, Brandon Strange, and Josh Jordan. We drop two episodes every week on SportsMapHouston's YouTube channel. You can also listen on Apple Podcast, Spotifyor wherever you get your podcasts.