Whitney Mercilus says his down year wasn't due to injury

INTERVIEW

Whitney Mercilus joins The Jake Asman Show to discuss the 2018 Texans season, and how the team was able to come back from an 0-3 start to win the division. According to Mercilus, the team's improvement on special teams in 2018 was a big factor for the Texans. Houston's weakness in this area has been an issue for several seasons, and they showed noticeable improvement in 2018. Whitney also talks about coming back from a pectoral injury he suffered in 2017, and how he got off to a slow start after tweaking his hamstring in training camp.

Later, Mercilus shares his thoughts on what makes J.J. Watt and Jadeveon Clowney so special, and how the addition of safety Tyrann Mathieu impacted the team. Finally, Whitney talks about Deshaun Watson's toughness and how expects him to get substantially better every year.

You can listen to the full interview above, and make sure to catchThe Jake Asman Showon SB Nation Radio.

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The Astros beat the Brewers, 9-1. Photo by Jack Gorman/Getty Images.

Framber Valdez pitched seven strong innings and Jeremy Peña homered and drove in four runs as the Houston Astros defeated the Milwaukee Brewers 9-1 on Wednesday.

Houston earned just its second victory in seven games to snap Milwaukee’s three-game winning streak and leave both teams with .500 records. The Brewers were attempting to sweep a series from the Astros for the first time since 2012.

The Astros led 3-1 before Peña broke the game open by delivering a three-run homer to left off reliever Elvin Rodriguez with two outs in the sixth inning.

Valdez (2-4) struck out seven while allowing three hits, two walks and one run to earn his first win since the Astros’ March 27 season opener. He threw a season-high 101 pitches.

Milwaukee’s only run off Valdez came on Eric Haase’s fifth-inning homer, a 425-foot drive to center.

The Astros took a 1-0 lead off Quinn Priester (1-1) in the second inning as Jake Meyers hit a two-out single and scored on Zach Dezenzo’s double.

The Brewers have lost all 13 games this season in which their opponent scored first.

Five-time All-Star closer Josh Hader worked the ninth while pitching in Milwaukee for the first time since the Brewers traded him in 2022.

Key moment

The Astros led 1-0 and had runners on third and second with one out in the fifth when Peña hit a bouncer to third.

The throw home beat Dezenzo to the plate. Home plate umpire Chris Conroy initially ruled Dezenzo out, but the Astros challenged the call and replays showed the runner slid home ahead of Haase’s tag.

Key stat

Valdez has now pitched at least seven innings an MLB-leading 57 times since 2020.

Up next

The Astros host the Cincinnati Reds on Friday. Scheduled pitchers are right-hander Hunter Brown (5-1, 1.67) for the Astros and right-hander Nick Martinez (1-3, 4.19) for the Reds.

The Brewers visit the Tampa Bay Ray on Friday. Left-hander José Quintana (4-1, 2.83) will pitch for the Brewers.

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