Jarred Cosart (1-1, 4.09) vs Tanner Scheppers (0-1, 9.00)
Free baseball for the second night in a row, and this time the result was the one the Astros wanted. A five-run Houston 5th and a solid start from Jarred Cosart were at risk of going for naught when the bullpen couldn't hold the lead, but the Astros wasted no time in extras tonight, walking away with a 6-5 win in 10. The win moves Houston to 5-7 on the year, and drops the Rangers to 5-6.
On the Mound:
*Jarred Cosart gave up runs in three of the first four innings tonight, but he settled down for three scoreless frames after that. He also kept the walks under control, and turned in a quality start with a 7 IP / 6 H / 3 R / 3 ER / 2 BB / 8 K line.
*Cosart turned over a 5-3 lead to Matt Albers for the 8th, but Albers allowed a run on a walk and a double before recording three straight outs.
*Then Kevin Chapman allowed the tying run on a solo HR by Michael Choice leading off the 9th.
*Anthony Bass came on after Houston took the lead in the top of the 10th, and he turned in an eventful-but-scoreless inning, recording the last two outs with Elvis Andrus on third base. That earned Bass his second save.
At the Plate:
*Houston did all of their scoring in the 5th and the 10th, led by Robbie Grossman's 3-run blast, for his second home run in three games. He also doubled to finish 2x4 with a K.
*Jose Altuve was also big, going 2x4 with a SB, and the game-winning RBI on a sac fly in the 10th.
*Jason Castro keyed that game-winning run with a one-out triple in the 10th. He finished 1x3 with a R and a BB.
*Matt Dominguez was 1x4 with a R, a RBI, and a K.
*Chris Carter went 1x3 with 2 BB, a R, and a K.
*Marwin Gonzalez never batted, but he scored the game winner after he pinch ran for Castro in the 10th.
*And Carlos Corporan was 0x3, but he drove in Houston's first run on a sac fly to start the five-run 5th.
Turning Point:
Our hearts sank when this one was forced to extras, but fortunately we didn't have to wait long for good news tonight. Alex Presley grounded out against Joakim Soria to start, but Jason Castro followed with a triple two pitches later. Marwin Gonzalez came in to run for Castro while Jose Altuve walked to the plate, then Altuve flied out to right on a 1-1 count, bringing Marwin home on the sac fly.
Man of the Match:
Robbie Grossman. He started extraordinarily slow this season, yes, but he's now got 2 HR, 5 RBI, and a .412 OBP in the last five games.
Goat of the Game:
Kevin Chapman. His only scoreless appearance (out of five) this year is still Friday night, when he pitched 0.2 of an inning and left with the bases loaded.
