Orioles 4, Astros 3
W: Chen (6-3)
L: Harrell (5-11)
Contributed by Reuben
Another strange loss for the Astros. Normally a team might like their chances of winning a game in which they hold their opponent to 3 hits, a game in which they execute a straight steal of home, a game in which their bullpen finishes the game with 2 2/3 scoreless innings. But the Astros are not a normal team, are they? And oh yeah, it’s baseball, besides. Strange losses are part of the charm, I suppose. Hmmm.
The 8-9-1-2 sequence in the order collected all of the Astros’ hits: Dominguez, Grossman, Villar, and Altuve were a combined 7-for-14. Unfortunately the middle of the order couldn’t muster any support: 0-for-19 with 1 walk and 8 strikeouts.
The Astros actually took a 3-0 lead in this game, and Lucas Harrell seemed to be cruising early on. Filling in for the soon-to-be-probably-traded Bud Norris, Harrell did not allow a hit over the first 3 innings. But in the 4th, he walked the leadoff guy, wasn’t as sharp out of the stretch, the home plate ump didn’t give him some calls he wanted, and Harrell began to Harrell his way into trouble: 3 walks in the inning, and a costly 2-out, 2-run single. In the 6th, another leadoff walk was followed by a slump-buster HR for Chris Davis. And that was the ballgame.
The play of the game, of course, was Jonathan Villar’s steal of home. Enjoy the video.