Astros 4, Mets 0
WP: W. Rodriguez (6-7)
LP: M. Pelfrey (0-7)
GZ AP DuBose is calling Cy Wandy This was Wandy’s game. Complete game shutout. I don’t care what Vanover’s strike zone was like. He was dropping his slow curve in, burying the slider, and spotting the fastball. Half of his 8 Ks were swinging.
He worked quickly. Walked one, in the 9th. Hardly ever took his foot off the rubber, got ahead in the count, got the ball and threw it. Game time 2:18. First complete game of his career.
All that against the team with the best average in the NL vs lefthanders.
The Astros were somewhat befuddled by Pelfry at first. But, by the second time through, they decided that whining about the ump was not going to get them anywhere. Didn’t help the Phillies. So they decided to make their own breaks.
In the 3rd, Ausmus beat out an infield hit. Moved over to 2nd on a bunt and then, with 1 out, decided he was going to test Ramon Castro and steal 3rd. In a manuver he may have picked up from Bagwell, he started his slide about 5 feet too early. The ball beat him, but he popped up, Wright went left, Ausmus went right and avoided the tag. Safe.
Bagwell, serving his time in the booth with Milo, remarked, “He had a lot of time to think what he was going to do running over from 2nd.” That’s what you would have heard had you been listening to the radio. But, if you’re MikeyBoy and neglected to mash the worrell button, you were hearing Greg Lucas say, “(about Pelfry’s mouthguard) it’s to keep Pelfrey from biting through his tongue, but Lucas also thinks Pelfrey moves his tongue left to right when he throws a fastball.”
Biggio banged a single up the middle to score Ausmus. Later in the 5th, Ausmus walked and again moved over on a bunt. Biggio failed this time, but Pence picked him up with a double down the left field line. That made the score 2-0, Berkman followed Pence with a homerun over the Banco Popular sign in left. That’s how you know he’s hot.
The shortstop Reyes grounded out to 3rd for the last out in the 8th. But he didn't bother to run to first. Randolph sat the kid down. New York likely won't notice.
Wandy went out for the 9th. Walked the 1st batter Valentin. But Wandy got Beltran to sky one to right, and then a force at second, set up the edmonds gambit. With Delgado up, Wandy let sail a fastball that went wide right, bounced off Brad’s glove and shot towards the backstop. Ausmus wheeled, barehanded the hard carom off the bricks and threw a strike, nailing the runner trying for 2nd. Game over. If you’re scoring at home that was 1-2-brick-5.
