Jordan Lyles (2-6, 5.29) vs Josh Collmenter (1-2, 3.90)
Big innings keep killing the Astros. Yesterday it was a five-run 4th; Friday it was a five-run 5th. Today it was a seven-run 6th, and Houston gets swept by the D-backs with an 8-2 defeat. The Astros limp home on a six-game losing streak, after a 1-9 road trip, now 34-62 overall.
*Jordan Lyles' middle name is Horton, but perhaps it should be Hyde - he has been two different men in 2012. In six of twelve starts before today, he's posted a 2.52 ERA and averaged 6.2 IP per game (Dr. Jekyll). In his other six starts, he's put up a 9.29 ERA and averaged only 4.2 IP per start (Mr. Hyde). Or maybe you prefer the more modern Bruce Banner/Incredible Hulk analogy, but Lyles made it through 5.1 brilliant today before the gamma rays got to him. His line: 5.2 IP / 10 H / 8 R / 5 ER / 0 BB / 2 K, but six of those hits and seven of those runs came after the first 5.1 IP. Wesley Wright inherited two runners from Lyles and allowed both to score, then pitched a scoreless 7th. Fernando Abad added a perfect 8th.
Observations:
*Jose Altuve had his second straight multi-hit game, going 2 for 3 with a double and a walk from the leadoff spot.
*Scott Moore also had a multi-hit game, going 2 for 4 with two doubles and a run scored.
*Justin Maxwell launched a monster shot to center in the 2nd, for his 9th HR of the year. He'd finish 1 for 3.
*Carlos Corporan went 1 for 3 and now has a four-game hitting streak (!), tying the longest of his career.
*Marwin Gonzalez (1 for 4), Chris Johnson (1 for 4, 2B, RBI), and Brian Bogusevic (1 for 4, K) had Houston's other hits.
*Scott Moore also had a multi-hit game, going 2 for 4 with two doubles and a run scored.
*Justin Maxwell launched a monster shot to center in the 2nd, for his 9th HR of the year. He'd finish 1 for 3.
*Carlos Corporan went 1 for 3 and now has a four-game hitting streak (!), tying the longest of his career.
*Marwin Gonzalez (1 for 4), Chris Johnson (1 for 4, 2B, RBI), and Brian Bogusevic (1 for 4, K) had Houston's other hits.
Turning Point:
The fateful bottom of the 6th. Moore and CJ had back-to-back doubles in the top of the inning to give Houston a 2-1 lead, and the way that Jordan Lyles had been pitching, it seemed like that might have been enough. But a leadoff fly out in the Arizona half of the 6th was followed by five singles, a homer, a fielding error by Gonzalez, then a passed ball and another single after Wright took over.
Man of the Match:
Scott Moore. His second double led to Houston's second run, and an all-too-brief Astros lead.
Goat of the Game:
Jordan Lyles. He's the youngest starting pitcher in the National League, and he's shown plenty this season to indicate that his future may yet be bright. But he's the epitome of youthful inconsistency, and alas, today was a mini-capsule of his 2012 season.
