Astros @ A's, Game 1, 9/9/17

[austro]

Oh, great, we're hitting line drives right at people again. Super.

[austro]

Springer strikes out, Bregman lines out to 3rd, Altuve singles, Correa watches two strikes and then swings at a third and misses by a foot. I hope he finds his swing faster than he did this spring, or it's going to be no bueno.

[austro]

Semien leads off with a double, Joyce strikes out, Lowrie strikes out, Davis strikes out.

Tied 0-0 after 1.

[Astros Fan in Big D]

Nice way to deal with a leadoff double.

[austro]

Marwin singles up the middle on a 3-2 pitch.
White strikes out swinging.
Fisher flies out to the LF corner. Marwin tags and advances to 2nd. They don't have a lot of respect for Davis's arm.
Marisnick strikes out.

Scoreless in the middle of the 2nd.

As if the drums weren't enough, there's a kid out there with one of those fucking vuvuzelas.

[astrojo]

As if the drums weren't enough, there's a kid out there with one of those fucking vuvuzelas.

Not to mention the lady behind home plate with the Wonder Woman sunglasses. #shethinkshecute

[austro]

Not to mention the lady behind home plate with the Wonder Woman sunglasses.

Yeah, I saw that too. She doesn't look like she has much resemblance to Wonder Woman other than having the same number of limbs.

[HudsonHawk]

2-0 A's...Morton throwing puss

[Astros Fan in Big D]

 Jesus,  Charlie.

[HudsonHawk]

Now Morton with a 2-base throwing error (White should have caught it) puts another runner at 3B with one out...

[HudsonHawk]

Gonna be a LONG fucking day for the pen.

[Astros Fan in Big D]

Now Morton with a 2-base throwing error (White should have caught it) puts another runner at 3B with one out...

Then "Jesus, Charlie and Tyler."

[HudsonHawk]

Morton is hot garbage today.

[HudsonHawk]

Morton with an error on the comebacker and it's 3-0...two on, one out

[juliogotay]

Morton looked like me out there fielding his position. But I'm 63.

[Astros Fan in Big D]

JESUS, CHARLIE!

[HudsonHawk]

Centeno conked on the head on the backswing...still down....

[HudsonHawk]

Centeno will have to leave the game...Stassi in

[austro]

Olson leads off with another double.
Somebody grounds out 4-3, Olson advances to 3rd.
Chapman up, and surprise! he punishes us again with a triple to RF.
Mighty Boog Powell singles to LF and drives in Chapman.
Now Morton throws away the pick-off and Powell goes all the way to 3rd because of the immense foul territory. Might have been more White's fault than Morton. Either way, it sucks. This is fundamental shit.
Phegley walks on a 3-2 checked swing that could have gone either way.
Oh, goody, Semien's up with runners on 1st and 3rd. 95% of all of his hits this season have come against the Astros. And he finally does us a favor with a checked swing bouncer back to the mound, but Morton fucks it up and can't make the play at the plate. Another run scores, Phegley moves to 2nd, Semien at 1st.
Joyce strikes out. I'll bet he feels like an idiot.
Lowrie nails Centeno on the side of the head with his follow-through, which is just what we need. And now he's leaving the game. Fuck. Here comes Stassi. Lowrie finally strikes out.

A's leads 3-0 after 2. Morton at 53 pitches. Good thing it's not a double-header today.

Hey, guess what? Fucking Indians won again today. Yeah, I know: not much of a surprise.

[Lefty]

Morton looked like me out there fielding his position. But I'm 63.

I was thinking Brad Lidge

[austro]

Time for these guys to act like they know how to play this game.

[austro]

I was thinking Brad Lidge

Even Jim Abbott would have made that play.

[Astros Fan in Big D]

Altuve, wtf?

[astrojo]

FFS Altuve and Correa!

[austro]

Stassi with a leaf-off walk.
Springer walks. 250 lb pitching coach out for a chat.
Bregman flies out to LF on a hanging breaker on the first pitch. Both runners advance (and Davis's throw wasn't within 15 ft of 3rd), but that ball should have been put in orbit.
Altuve with a weak-ass check swing bouncer that Gossett grabs and throws him out. He apparently missed the memo about pitchers fucking up comebackers.
Correa watches a center-cut FB, foul tips another, and then watches another thigh-high FB to strike out.

A's lead 3-0 in the middle of the 3rd.

I think I may need to go do something else before I have a stroke.

[HudsonHawk]

Correa is a fucking deer in the headlights right now.

[doyce7]

That was rage inducing.

Back to back walks, then Bregman swings at first pitch.
Idk what the fuck altuve was doing
And correa, swing the fucking bat!

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

[austro]

Correa is a fucking deer in the headlights right now.

I'm ready to sit him in the second game and let Marwin play short.

[HudsonHawk]

I'm ready to sit him in the second game and let Marwin play short.

He needs at bats.  The problem is, this isn't Spring Training, it's mid-September and you're in a pennant race. 

[austro]

And I'm willing to let Morton throw 200 pitches in this game so that everybody is ready for the second game. You made this shit sandwich, you can eat it. Although 200 pitches probably only gets him to the 8th inning.

[Astros Fan in Big D]

And I'm willing to let Morton throw 200 pitches in this game so that everybody is ready for the second game. You made this shit sandwich, you can eat it. Although 200 pitches probably only gets him to the 8th inning.

Agree. 

You might have to revise the # of pitches to get to the 8th depending on the number of comebackers.

[austro]

Davis pops up to Stassi.
Olson fouls off a bunch of pitches and then walks.
Healy strikes out.
Chapman grounds into a 5-3 force.

A's lead 3-0 after 3 innings.

[austro]

Marwin strikes out. Probably didn't want to be stranded at 3rd again.
White doubles off the LCF fence. That was a nice swing.
Fisher grounds out 3-1 on a fairly close play. White moves to 3rd.
Marisnick gets called out on a checked swing that the A's have been getting away with all day.

A's continue to lead 3-0 in the middle of the 4th.

This is one frustrating game. And I fear that it's going to be a frustrating series.

[juliogotay]

Kalas keeps kicking the BBGs in the nuts.

[austro]

A couple of guys make outs somehow.
Somebody (Semien?) walks.
Joyce is bunting for some reason, but bunts it foul. He winds up striking out.

A's lead 3-0 after 4 innings. Morton at something like 88 pitches.

[austro]

Horns apparently looking somewhat competent. I'd gladly trade that for a couple of Astros wins.

[The Third Man]

Let's get on the board, Astros. It's time.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Finally a run.

[juliogotay]

Horns apparently looking somewhat competent. I'd gladly trade that for a couple of Astros wins.

Frosh playing QB.

[Astros Fan in Big D]

Let's get on the board, Astros. It's time.

You might want to try that again and see if it works.

[The Third Man]

Bregman has really emerged as the best hitter on the team lately. His approach is so much better than anybody else.

[austro]

Stassi gets on base somehow.
Springer doing his Gomez impression. I wish he'd back off a little and concentrate on hitting some liners. Stassi does a nice job of advancing on a ball in the dirt. Gossett hangs one in the happy zone and Springer pops it up to shallow RF.
Bregman doubles off the LF wall and Stassi scores!
Altuve grounds to short, and Bregman gets run down in the absolute worst piece of shit baserunning move you'll see all year. And although nobody's saying anything yet, I think Altuve tweaked his knee getting back into 1st.
And then Altuve gets picked off.

This may be the most frustrating team in the history of the game.

A's lead 3-1 in the middle of the 5th.

[astrojo]

You might want to try that again and see if it works.

How can they get on the board when they can't even stay on the bases?!

[austro]

How can they get on the board when they can't even stay on the bases?!

Seriously, only one of the three outs that inning was made by a batter. What kind of shit is that?

[HudsonHawk]

Putting on another base running clinic.

[HudsonHawk]

Another 0-2 meatball from Morton.  For someone who throws as hard as he does, he pitches like he's scared shitless.

[Astros Fan in Big D]

Attention Houston Astros:

It's September,  not August.

[austro]

Lowrie out on a nice play by Marwin throwing across his body.
Davis singles to LF on a pitch that could have just as easily wound up in the LF upper deck.
Foreshadowing: "One of Tyler Clippard's warm-up pitches wound up on the warning track in RCF."
Olson singles to RF, Davis advances to 3rd.
Healy strikes out on a pretty wicked breaking ball.
Chapman up. Olson advances on an 0-2 pitch in the dirt. Chapman files out to LF.

A's lead 3-1 after 5. Morton at 110 pitches, so that's probably the end. I never really thought he'd get this far, and when you look at it, we've seen a lot worse things than 3 runs in 5 innings.

Fwiw, I like Stassi behind the plate.

[HudsonHawk]

Lowrie out on a nice play by Marwin throwing across his body.
Davis singles to LF on a pitch that could have just as easily wound up in the LF upper deck.
Foreshadowing: "One of Tyler Clippard's warm-up pitches wound up on the warning track in RCF."
Olson singles to RF, Davis advances to 3rd.
Healy strikes out on a pretty wicked breaking ball.
Chapman up. Olson advances on an 0-2 pitch in the dirt. Chapman files out to LF.

A's lead 3-1 after 5. Morton at 110 pitches, so that's probably the end. I never really thought he'd get this far, and when you look at it, we've seen a lot worse things than 3 runs in 5 innings.

Fwiw, I like Stassi behind the plate.

And one of them was unearned on the error by White.

[austro]

Correa strikes out again. (I think. He was walking back to the dugout when I came back into the room.)
Marwin grounds out.
White grounds out.

Cy Gosset takes a 3-1 lead into the bottom of the 6th.

[HudsonHawk]

Correa strikes out again. (I think. He was walking back to the dugout when I came back into the room.)
Marwin grounds out.
White grounds out.

Cy Gosset takes a 3-1 lead into the bottom of the 6th.

Correa hit a weak popup to 1B

[HudsonHawk]

Clippard in...greeted by a shiftfuck double

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

This game is really a pisser.

[austro]

Correa hit a weak popup to 1B

Well, at least he now knows what it feels like to have the bat hit the ball. Maybe that will help.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Also didn't get my Houston Strong shirt in the mail today. I guess they really mean 7 business days.

[austro]

Also didn't get my Houston Strong shirt in the mail today. I guess they really mean 7 business days.

They're being manufactured in Florida.

[juliogotay]

this game is painful to watch. Why am I watching it when there is college football on?

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

I was trying to hold out to the 2nd game before I started drinking, but, fuck it.

[The Third Man]

Clippard detractors just about broke the internet when the Astros picked him up. I now understand why.

[juliogotay]

I was trying to hold out to the 2nd game before I started drinking, but, fuck it.

this game is a waste of good alcohol.

[astrojo]

this game is painful to watch. Why am I watching it when there is college football on?

Exactly. I could be napping. Astros bats and base runners are. They don't seem the least bit interested in winning this game after last nights debacle.

[Lefty]

I was trying to hold out to the 2nd game before I started drinking, but, fuck it.

I got out the WL Weller at 5, couldn't take it any longer.

[juliogotay]

Clippard detractors just about broke the internet when the Astros picked him up. I now understand why.

for one thing he is a human rain-delay.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

I took a nap during the bottom of the 2nd inning...  Clippard ain't no good

[juliogotay]

going to make a Manhaten.

[Astros Fan in Big D]

Well that was a terrible outing.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Verlander is probably second guessing waiving the no-trade clause.

[Aussie Astro]

Well that was a terrible outing.

I hope so, hate to think it was average.

[The Third Man]

I can't remember a team this good that had so many choad smokers in the bullpen. I have more confidence in Sean Spicer than I do James fucking Hoyt. God damn, Hinch.

[austro]

Clippard in to pitch the 6th.

Boog Fucking Powell doubles into RCF. I swear to God that guy had four total hits before this series.
Phegley grounds to Altuve on a nice play up the middle. Powell advances to 3rd.
Semien walks. Runners on 1st and 3rd.
Semien "steals" 2nd, if you can call blind indifference by the defense "stealing".
Joyce walks. Bases are loaded with one out. I'm sure nothing can go wrong now.
Lowrie walks, scoring a run.

Mercifully, Hinch comes out to yank Clippard. Hoyt coming in. I hope he likes pitching with the bases loaded.

Davis hits the first pitch up the middle and drives in two. Runners on 1st and 2nd, still only one out.
Olson flies out to LF.
Healy strikes out to end the misery.

A's lead 6-1 after 6 innings.

If you looked at the starting lineups and said "guess which one of these teams will score six runs", this isn't the one I would have picked.

I sure hope the PTBNL in the Clippard deal isn't significant. This team is fucked big time in the postseason. There are about two pitchers that one can count on, and that just won't cut it against teams with actual big-league talent.

[austro]

Fisher walks to lead off the 7th.

That's enough for Melvin, and he comes out to take the ball from Nolan Gossett. Dull coming in.

Marisnick obliges by grounding into a 5-4-3 double play.
Stassi grounds out 5-3.

A's lead 6-1 in the middle of the 7th.

I don't know enough pejorative terms to describe this game, and that's saying something.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

TCU beat Arkansas 28-7.

[austro]

Hoyt stays in for the 7th.

Chapman grounds out 6-3.
What's this? Powell grounds out 4-3.
Phegley doubles down the LF line.

Strom out to chat with Hoyt. HPU really let them talk for a long time.

Semien, who now has 97% of his hits against the Astros, walks. On base all 5 ABs today. Ladies and gentlemen, your 2017 MVP.

That's it for Hoyt, the always impressive Reymin Guduan coming in for mop-up duty. Are these really the names one expects to hear for a legitimate postseason contender?

Pinder pinch-hitting for Joyce. Pinder flies out to RF for the third out.

A's lead 6-1 after 7 innings.

That's it for me; I've got to work on dinner. I doubt anybody will lament the end of my bitching.

[HudsonHawk]

Guduan with five straight walks, and walks in three runs...J. D. Davis getting his second relief appearance.

And is really getting squeezed by the ump. 

[homer]

9-1 in the 8th. Davis in to pitch with bases loaded and 1 out.

[HudsonHawk]

And Davis, throwing in the mid-90s...gets a punchout of a guy who hadn't been retired today.

[chuck]

Turns out Morton was today's best Astro pitcher, and by some comfortable margin.

[austro]

I hope these guys are embarrassed. I certainly am.

[HudsonHawk]

Good think this only counts as one game.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Man, that was a miserable performance by the Good Guys.

[austro]

You know, I feel better about Davis on the mound than I do about several other of our relievers.

[Lefty]

Good think this only counts as one game.

Wish we didn't have to wait so long for the next game to get this taste out of our mouths.

I remember how I felt after the Brian Giles Game, I think they beat 'em by 15 in game 2.

[austro]

I remember how I felt after the Brian Giles Game, I think they beat 'em by 15 in game 2.

Oh, wow, I was in Norfolk with my daughter for a track meet for that one. She had a day off and we had been at the battleship for a tour and we got back to the hotel room just in time to see Wagner cough it up. I taught her several new words that day.

[Lefty]

Oh, wow, I was in Norfolk with my daughter for a track meet for that one. She had a day off and we had been at the battleship for a tour and we got back to the hotel room just in time to see Wagner cough it up. I taught her several new words that day.

This thread needs to die and be forgotten and you should start one for game 2.

[das]

Wish we didn't have to wait so long for the next game to get this taste out of our mouths.

I remember how I felt after the Brian Giles Game, I think they beat 'em by 15 in game 2.

I blame you for the game 2 loss.

[Lefty]

I blame you for the game 2 loss.

I wish my mojo was that strong.  I would use it for good, not evil.