The Astros beat the Red Sox behind Brett Oberholtzer's gem, 2-0 last night. Here are some notes!
*With the win over the Red Sox, the Astros now have at least one win against every team they have played. With the exception of Minnesota.
*65 of the Astros' 111 games this season have come against a team over .500. The Astros are now 15-50 against those teams.
*It was the Astros' first win against Boston since June 29, 2008.
*Big-Balled Brett Oberholtzer. He threw 7IP for the second straight start, allowing 4H/0ER, 2K:2BB. In 14IP in his two starts this season, Oberholtzer has allowed 7H/0ER, 8K:2BB.
*He has thrown 124 of his last 188 pitches for strikes.
*The last time Oberholtzer had consecutive scoreless starts? July 4 and July 9, 2009 for Appy League Danville. (13IP, 6H/0ER, 14K:2BB).
*Josh Fields came in and struck out all four batters he faced. He has struck out five of the last seven batters he has faced. It's the 7th straight game in which Fields has recorded at least one strikeout, lowering his ERA from 7.04 to 5.85 in that span.
*The big news offensively is Chris Carter. He struck out four times (in four plate appearances) for his 146th, 147th, 148th, and 149th strikeouts of the year - breaking the 41-year old franchise record for strikeouts, set by Lee May in 1972.
*The offense was paced by the bottom of the order. L.J. Hoes was 2x3, scoring both runs, and Jonathan Villar was 2x2 with a walk. That was Villar's first multi-hit game since July 23 (his second career MLB game). Villar has drawn a walk in five of his last six games.
*The Astros stole six bases last night (caught stealing twice). That's the most stolen bases in a game for the Astros since April 25, 2010, when they beat the Pirates, 10-3. In that game, Pedro Feliz and Carlos Lee stole their first bases of the season.
*I would like to point out the ages of the lineup last night: 23, 27, 23, 26, 26, 26, 23, 23, 22. Oberholtzer is 23.
*Man of the Match: Brett Oberholtzer
*Goat of the Game: Chris Carter
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
