Nine hits between the team only amounts to just one runs
For the first time since 2005, the Houston Astros sent out an all right-handed lineup to face off against a righty pitcher, and it didn’t work.
While they might have been able to rack up the hits, they couldn’t do a thing with runners on, going 2-14 with men on base.
A leadoff double from Milwaukee Brewers Joey Ortiz off Astros starter Ronel Blonco in the bottom of the third led to William Contreras smacking a single into left, scoring Ortiz for the first run of the game.
The next two came off the bat of the next hitter, Christian Yelich, who launched a 413 ft. homer into right-center for his sixth of the year, giving Milwaukee a 3-0 lead after three. This was the only hiccup for Blonco, who after this settled down to throw another two innings of scoreless ball.
Ronel Blonco’s final line:
6 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, 98-66 (TP-S)
Kaleb Ort was the first man out of the pen for Houston after Blonco’s day was done and he picked up a clean inning in the seventh before the Astros brought in Bennett Sousa and the Brewers added on two more before the day was done.
The first came after a one-out walk to Yelich and a steal allowed him to score on a Rhys Hoskins stand-up double down the right field line, and the next came on an RBI-single from Jake Bauers, bringing the game to its final; 5-1
Houston finally got on the board in the top of the sixth off Brewers starter Tobias Myers, who had thrown five innings of three-hit ball against the Astros.
Their rally with back-to-back base-hits from Jose Altuve and Isaac Paredes, putting men on first and second for Christian Walker, who sent a comebacker back to the mound on a high bounce, warenting a bad throw to second from the pitcher and allowing all the runners to be safe, including Altuve crossing the plate, making it 3-1.
The Astros ended up loading the bases with one-out after a Yainer Diaz single into center wasn’t far enough to advance Walker or Paredes, but a Zach Dezenzo strikeout and Jake Meyers popup ended those chances and ended the top half of the sixth with just one run crossing for the Astros.
This was all the Astros could do on offense throughout the entirety of the game. Of their nine hits, they only managed to get three runners into scoring position in the game, leaving 15 guys on base.
Bad night for the Astros. One that they can only hope to make up for tomorrow.