First and foremost, please keep those suffering in the central Texas floods in your thoughts and prayers on this Fourth of July holiday. They will need continuing support and resources in the coming weeks and months. A truly heartbreaking and tragic situation. Baseball is trivial compared to the harrowing events that have taken place in the region over the past day.
It was only one game against the best team in baseball. In a season of 162, this game holds little value in the grand scheme of things. There are still two games left in this three-game set. But, mercy, that was certainly a fun and action filled game, albeit entirely one-sided.
18-1. The largest home defeat for the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium. Not a bad way to start the holiday weekend road series.
What can you say about this lineup? Jose Altuve, two home runs. Victor Caratini, a grand slam. Christian Walker had a home run himself, which only reinforces the notion that he really enjoys playing in Dodger Stadium. Cam Smith continues to rake. It was a grand time for this group, who are still without Yordan Alvarez and Jeremy Peña.
Smith, in particular, has continued to show some noticeable improvement in recent months. His emergence this season has proven incredibly valuable as the Astros have been without their best hitter for most of the season. A .805 OPS as a rookie at a new position (right field) is nothing short of impressive. While Jacob Wilson of the A’s is the likely favorite for AL Rookie of the Year, Smith is playing himself into the overall conversation.
Lost in the offensive explosion was Lance McCullers Jr. as he shook off a rough start against the Cubs not too long ago. While there were some occasional hiccups, McCullers ultimately pitched six effective innings, limiting Los Angeles to one run. And, thanks to the early (and large) lead, Jason Alexander finished this game with three scoreless innings. He actually got the save, for whatever that’s worth (not much).
In any case, the lineup was clearly on its A-game from the start, even if Orel Hershisher had other thoughts. 2017 will always remain over this franchise, especially when they play the Dodgers, but making that insinuation following Smith’s third inning double was certainly a choice. You know, Smith who is…
Checks notes
A 22-year-old rookie acquired from the Cubs in the offseason. I know the comment was directed towards to the lineup in general, but only one hitter from that team remains. Years removed from 2017, by the way, along with two managers and two general managers later, for whatever that’s worth to you.
Framber Valdez starts opposite of Shohei Ohtani on Saturday. Excuse me, but I’ll be geeking out about that matchup, even if the latter only pitches a couple of innings.