contributed by austro (dude went on the DL with writing cramps after this contribution)
Sunday, June 27, 2010

Astros 1
Rangers 10

WP: Hunter (4-0) LP: Oswalt (5-10)

Astros.com
GameZone

Well, now the Astros have BOTH of the pitchers with the most losses in the big leagues (Wandy, of course, being the other). The defense behind Oswalt let him down again, coughing up a monster 2-run jack to Hamilton in the second, and then collapsing for another homer to Young in the third. With help like that, it’s easy to understand why a guy might take the rest of the afternoon off, which Oswalt did after 4 2/3 IP, 8 R, 7 ER, and 7 hits. Of course, that’s a week’s worth of runs for the Astros offense, so there wasn’t really any doubt about the outcome by the time Roy ambled off the hill. Roy’s seeming indifference to the whole spectacle is troubling, as is the increasing doubt about getting back anything of value in a trade. Perhaps we can borrow Evan Longoria from the Rays for an inning or two to let Roy know that we’re not seeing the sort of effort that is expected.

Not a lot of highlights in this one. The Astros lone run scored when Bourn knocked in Blum in the top of the fifth, but the game was already decided by that point. Bourgeois made a nice diving catch on a fly ball, but there is some question about whether that became necessary because of a bad read. Johnson had yet another error at 3B, giving him a total of five since rejoining the big club last Monday; keep that up, and you’ll be back in Round Rock soon, son. And Berkman’s homer on Friday is looking more and more like an aberration rather than the start of something good, since he hasn’t really struck anything solidly since then.

But at least Arlington is in the rear view mirror now, along with the rest of the AL. Now it’s off to Milwaukee to face the Brewers, who are finally starting to show a pulse.

contributed by austro (pinch-hitter dee-lux!)
Saturday, June 26, 2010

Astros 2
Rangers 7

WP: Wilson (6-3) LP: Banks (0-1)

Astros.com
Gamezone

Josh Banks drew the short straw for the afternoon start at the Tandoori in Arlington. He was in trouble from the beginning in his first start as an Astro. He managed to escape unscathed in the first two innings, stranding 5 baserunners, but in the bottom of the third the Rangers finally broke through to take a 1-0 lead. Meanwhile, the Astros were producing some baserunners, but Keppinger and Berkman both hit into double plays to kill innings.

There was a brief moment of hope in the top of the fourth when Jason Michaels smacked a two-run homer to give the Astros a 2-1 lead. But the Rangers extinguished that hope in the bottom of the fourth, first with a run-scoring double by Ramirez and then with a 3-run shot by Kinsler. That put the Rangers out to 5-2 lead and effectively meant the end of the game. The Rangers added two more in the fifth, and the Astros didn’t.

At the end of the day, the Rangers had 7 runs and 15 hits to the Astros’ 2 and 5. Banks was charged with 6 ER in 4+ IP. Just another day at the office.

Tune in Sunday at 7pm for the series finale (finally).

contributed by austro (our very own Corey Sullivan… oh wait)

Friday, June 25, 2010

Astros 7
Rangers 4

WP: Moehler (1-4) SV: Lindstrom (14) LP: Lewis (7-5)

Astros.com
Gamezone

Well, this game had a little bit of everything:

* Spazz slipping and falling while coming in on a line drive, then reaching up and knocking the ball down to keep it to a single;

* Blum rounding first too wide and getting caught in a rundown when the Rangers threw behind him;

* Elvis Andrus making a ridiculous over-the-shoulder diving catch on a blooper by Berkman;

* Twinkie returning the favor by making a diving stop on Adrus’ ball down the line;

* Ian Kinsler gettng thrown out for not saying anything (although the bat flip and helmet chunk were probably enough);

* Chris Johnson committing his fourth error in five (?) games on an easy two-hopper hit directly at him;

* The return of the Puma, as Berkman absolutely crushed a homer to dead center;

* HP ump getting beaned by a fastball when the Rangers’ catcher got crossed up;

* Q laying down a bunt with 2 out and making it to second when the Rangers threw the ball away (no doubt aided by the fact that Q was about 5 feet out of the basepath in fair territory);

* Navarro dropping a simple little pop-up when he tried to transfer the ball to his throwing hand (ruled an error).

Moehler gave a serviceable effort; not his finest, to be sure, but at 5IP-3R-2ER, it certainly wasn’t a disaster either. Most importantly, he never gave in to a batter: he always kept trying to work corners, even when that meant walking in a run, and worked his way out of a couple of bases-loaded jams. With the help of Sampson, Chacin, Lopez, and Lindstrom, that was enough to end the Rangers win streak and give Moehler his first win since last August. Johnson provided 3 RBI, and Pence, Blum, and Berkman had one apiece. Bourn and Bourgeois both stole a base. For the Rangers, Hamilton (who is hitting over .500 for the last three weeks) had three hits to extend his hitting streak to 19 games.

Come back tomorrow for some hot, steamy action at 2pm. The game is on Fox, so there’s no telling what kind of slap-dick announcing crew we’ll get. You may want to start drinking early to numb the pain.

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Gints 5
Astros 7

W: Wandy | L: Cain | S: Lindstrom

Astros.com
Gamezone

These chumps missed Wandy's win!

...and Castro's first MLB jack!!

Happy iPhone 4 Day, all you tech geeks (and Limey)! Good thing you weren’t out waiting in line for a phone because you would have missed a good one. I missed most of it but it wasn’t Steve Jobs’ fault. The geniuses who made sports watchable on the interwebs have cost me a bit of productivity this week and it all has come crashing down. But, I saw enough to scare up a coupla bullet points:

► In his last 7 starts, Matt Cain had given up only 7 earned runs. Today he gave up 7 in less than 3 innings.
► Pence blew it open early when he hit a chest-high FB waaay out towards the Conoco Pump for a 3-run HR.
► Jason Castro went yard for the first time in his Major League career with a mammoth blast to the upper deck in right.
► Wandy seemed to right things a bit, going 6 and giving up just 4 hits. He did a great job pitching around…
► …ugliness again in the field as 4 of the 5 SF runs were unearned. 3 errors for the 2nd straight game (2 for Blum) almost cost them this one.
► The only SF run earned was during another creative “save situation” for Lindstrom. 3 hits and a run before he gets the Uribe K to end it.

The last round of interleague horseshit begins tomorrow night in Arlington with Moehler facing Lewis. Check out more of Craig’s epic Dallas-hate in his Series Preview.

Yesterday, SnS Apple analyst Limey reported the hubbub regarding the iPhone 4’s signal issues when holding the phone a certain way, particularly left-handed. Steve Jobs has a brilliant solution; don’t hold it that way!

Giants 3, Astros 6
w: Brett Myers, L: Barry Zito

Astros Recap
Game Zone

The Astros finally beat the Giants this year. It took the 8th meeting between them, but the finally did it.

Jeff Keppinger’s 2 out double in the 2nd gave the Astros a 4-0 lead. Zito threw Keppinger some weak-ass shit.

Overall the game was enjoyable, minus the 3 errors in the field by the Astros. The rookies Johnson and Castro seemed a bit shaky out there. I thought Bourgeious was ok in CF and uncomfortable in LF. I also think he will be able to adjust fine there.

The bats were there for 11 hits on the night. The hit parade was led by Keppinger, Lee, and Johnson with 2 each.

Today’s game is an early one, so productivity for Astros fans may be down this afternoon at their places of employment. Check out strosrays outstanding series preview if you haven’t already for more information.

And don’t forget the USA plays Ghana Saturday at 1:30 CST. Go USA!!!