CODY STOOTS
Texans player of the game: Lamar Miller's 100-yard rushing day leads the way
Oct 21, 2018, 3:12 pm
Lamar Miller carried the load on Sunday. Bobby Ellis/Getty Images
The Texans are in first place in large part thanks to Lamar Miller's best game of the season. Houston beat Jacksonville on the road to take over sole possession of first place.
Miller got going early as the Texans focused on the rushing attack. An early huge contribution from the Texans back was when he took a draw 16 yards to get the Texans into field goal range. Later, he was the focal point that he helped finish off for a score.
He touched the ball four times on a second-quarter drive with his fifth touch being his first rushing score of the season. In the first half, Miller totaled up 75 yards on the ground.
It also marked a breakthrough of a statistical plateau for Miller. The last time he rushed for 100 yards was 2016 against the Colts, a 22 game drought ended in Jacksonville.
With the balance and reliance on the run, the Texans did a great job taking care of Deshaun Watson and keeping him fairly clean. It was the best game for Miller but also for the offensive line's run blocking as well. If they could solidify some of the pass-blocking the offense could be a dangerous draw for defenses.
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Luis Robert Jr. tied it with an RBI single with two outs in the sixth inning, stole second base and scored the go-ahead run on Edgar Quero's single as the Chicago White Sox rallied to beat the Houston Astros 5-4 on Sunday in a game shortened to seven innings by rain.
The game was delayed for 80 minutes before being called. It was the White Sox’s second series victory of the season and their first series win against the Astros since July 2021. Chicago had lost or split its last six series with Houston.
Chicago reliever Mike Vasil (1-1) earned his first career win after holding the Astros without a hit in 2 1/3 innings.
Lance McCullers Jr. made his first start for Houston since Game 3 of the 2022 World Series. The 31-year-old right-hander missed the entire 2023 and 2024 seasons, but kept the White Sox scoreless Sunday in 3 2/3 innings. McCullers allowed three hits, walked three and struck out four.
Astros reliever Steven Okert (1-1) allowed two earned runs in one inning. Zach Dezenzo hit his first homer of the season for Houston and Mauricio Dubón had a two-run single.
Key moment
With two outs in the sixth and a rain delay looming, Robert dropped a 2-1 pitch into center field for a single. Chase Meidroth came around to score from second, tying it at four. Robert stole second, enabling Quero to bring him home on what turned out to be the winning base hit.
Key stat
Entering Sunday, Chicago was 30th in the majors with runners in scoring position, hitting just .202 this season. The White Sox initially struggled, but finished the game 4 for 13 with runners in scoring position. All five of the team’s runs came with two outs.
Up next
The Astros will continue their road trip in Milwaukee, while the White Sox head to Kansas City for a four-game series against the Royals. Both series are scheduled to begin Monday.