Astros (23-32) 3, Orioles (26-26) 1
Contributed by Mr. Happy
The Astros combined the pop of King George’s bat with some nifty pitching to best the Birds of Baltimore last night. Springer hit his tenth home run of May, but all was not peaches and cream for the Good Guys from a hitter’s perspective. The Astros could muster but five knocks in the game, although when one of them leaves the yard with a man aboard, that helps. The situational hitting bug-a-boos continue to plague the Astros as they were a putrid 1-15 w/RISP, leaving nine LOBsters. The hitters also racked up nine K’s, versus four free passes.
The inconsistent Ubaldo Jimenez actually was pretty good last night, or at least much better than his last time out against the Tribe. I watched that game, and he ran up a high pitch count and imploded in the fifth frame. However, Brad Peacock matched him toe-to-toe, tossing six frames of one run baseball, striking out eight while issuing no free passes. The bully was excellent last night in securing the win, as FIELDS! went two frames for the win, and Chad sQualls picked up his fourth save. It is noteworthy that the Astros pitching staff issued zero free passes last night while striking out 12. It was an excellent performance out of the staff and lowered the staff ERA to a respectable 4.20.
The Astros are suddenly finding themselves back in respectable territory and are only nine games under .500. The team BA has climbed to .238. As the Good Guys prepare to don the throwback jerseys of the Houston Eagles in tonight’s civil rights game, it is a good time to reflect on the strides that society in the United States has made in this area. It has been quite significant in my lifetime. I still remember all-white restaurants and bathrooms. Brett Oberholtzer (1-6, 5.32) squares off against righty Miguel Gonzalez (3-3, 4.35). Come join us in the Game Zone.
Time of the Ball Game: 2:56.
Attendance: 22,884.
Roof: Open