Bud Norris (4-3, 3.40) vs Anibal Sanchez (3-3, 1.97)
The Astros lost another ballgame tonight. Here's hoping they didn't just lose much more than that. Both Jose Altuve and Bud Norris left the game with injuries, and another big inning by the opposition buried Houston alive. Astros fall to Detroit 7-2, dropping their fifth straight and slumping to 10-29 overall.
On the Mound:
*Bud did just fine for the first three innings, allowing only one run on back-to-back doubles starting the game. But the 4th inning was the Mack truck that ran over the Astros tonight, with a two-run homer and a grand slam turning Norris' night ugly. He stayed in through the 5th, but then left with back spasms during warmup tosses before the 6th. His line tonight: 5 IP / 9 H / 7 R / 7 ER / 1 BB / 2 K.
*Paul Clemens, at least, was a bright spot for Houston tonight, stepping in for the fallen Bud. (Not Roger) tossed three innings of scoreless, 1 BB, 3 K ball to finish the game.
At the Plate:
*Jose Altuve grounded out in his first (and only) AB, but he didn't make it past the bottom of the 2nd. Jhonny Peralta blooped a fly ball into short right field, so Altuve, 1B Chris Carter, and RF Jimmy Paredes all gave chase. Paredes and Altuve collided and both went down, but Jose got the worse end of the deal - it appeared on replay that his face ran into Paredes' shoulder, with the result being that Altuve had to leave the game with a partially dislocated jaw.
*Robbie Grossman did get the Astros on the board with a RBI single in the 3rd. He finished his night 2 for 4 with a run scored.
*Marwin Gonzalez slid over to second after Altuve left, and he singled and scored in front of Grossman in the 3rd, finishing 1 for 3 with a SB.
*Ronny Cedeno took over at short for Marwin and went 0 for 2 with a K and a HBP, but he still got credit for a RBI, driving in Grossman on a fielder's choice.
*Jimmy Paredes stayed in after damaging Altuve to finish the game 1 for 3 with a walk and a steal.
*J.D. Martinez had Houston's only XBH tonight, going 2 for 4 with a double.
*Carlos Pena had the Astros' final hit of the night on a 9th-inning single, to finish 1 for 4 with 2 K.
Turning Point:
Injuries aside, it was Bud's 4th inning that doomed the Astros tonight. Given a 2-1 lead, a double/homer by Prince Fielder and Victor Martinez made it 3-2 Detroit to start the inning. Alex Avila grounded out next, but then a single/single/walk trifecta loaded the bases, and Andy Dirks took Bud deep for a 7-2 lead that added insult to (literal) injury.
Man of the Match:
Paul Clemens, for filling in on short notice and doing a great job of it.
Goat of the Game:
Hard to pick on a fallen warrior, but this loss was squarely on Bud Norris. Sorry, guy... just feel better soon, okay?
