Verlander’s return was hopeful, but few pitchers can win with only one run behind them.
Justin Verlander is baaaack.
Unfortunately the Astros offense is MIA.
Verlander’s return was a good as could be expected after his long layoff. He went five innings, allowing only two runs. His rust showed early, allowing one run in each of the first two innings. After that, Justin was nails.
A leadoff Jarron Duran double followed by a Triston Casas single put the Red Sox on the board in the first inning. In the second a Masataka Yoshida single followed by a double from All Star MVP Ceddanne Rafaela gave the Sox their second run.
From then on Verlander did not allow a hit, and ended with six Ks and only one walk.
Verlander was very good but not perfect, and nowadays, the Astros only win when their pitchers are near-perfect. The Astros scored their only run in their first at bat when Alex Bregman, just back from an injury hiatus as DH, hit a wicked line drive just into the Crawford Boxes.
After that, another day of complete Astros offensive futility. They’ve gotten away with it a lot lately. No one should have expected that luck to continue.
The seventh inning was the low point. The bottom, and for the Astros that means rock-bottom, of the order miraculously loaded the bases for Bregman and Yordan Alvarez. Bregman hit a short flyout, and slumping Alvarez struck out on three pitches (a recent pattern). The Astros failed to score even one run with runners on second and third and no outs.
After Verlander, Bryan King held the Sox in the sixth inning, while Tayler Scott allowed one run in his two innings pitched. Seth Martinez entered in the ninth and allowed a home run to David Hamilton to extend the Sox lead to an insurmountable 4-1.
Without wanting to panic us Astros theater-goers with a false cry of fire, but a five game lead is not a sure thing. The Mariners have to wake up eventually, The Astros staff is tired and has been punching above their weight, a murderers’ row schedule awaits, and this Tucker-less lineup has too many almost sure outs. The only reliable hitter in the Boston series was Yainer Diaz, who was 6-10 with two homers including a game-tying dinger yesterday and a walk-off on Monday. He needs help.
Right now, the Astros offense could possibly sink the team as surely as the Mariners’ offense has sunk their immediate chances. The Astros were 0-7 with runners in scoring position tonight after going 0-8 last night.
The Astros lost the series to the Sox and split the homestand.
The Astros limp into Baltimore to face the powerful Orioles. Game time 6:08 CT.