Jose Quintana (1-3, 3.67) vs Collin McHugh (2-1, 2.81)
Three whole days without an Astros loss - two wins and an off day - were certainly nice while they lasted. About 2/3 of tonight looked pretty good, too, but then Collin McHugh's control began to slip. Then Adam Dunn made his family & friends in the stands happy, but that was the end of happy for Houston. White Sox take the series opener 7-2, and the Astros fall back to 14-28 on the season.
On the Mound:
*For 5.1 innings, Collin McHugh was spot on again, holding the White Sox to no runs and just two hits. That his final line ended up 5.1 IP / 3 H / 4 R / 4 ER / 4 BB / 7 K gives you some indication of how things went for him after that. More on that to come.
*Josh Zeid took over after McHugh faded in the 6th, and officially he threw a scoreless inning, including the first out of the 7th. But two hits and two walks (one intentional) did allow an inherited runner to score.
*Darin Downs struck out Adam Dunn in a LOOGY outing.
*Paul (Not Roger) Clemens handled the final 2.1 innings, and he did not have a good night: 3 runs on 4 hits and a walk, with 3 K. But all three of the runs he allowed were unearned (at least) (I guess), thanks (?) to a Jonathan Villar throwing error.
At the Plate:
*After 5 straight games with 11 hits each, the Astros offense only got 9 tonight, but that still should have been good for more than 2 runs at least. 1x7 with RISP, 10 LOBsters, and 10 K as a team.
*Jose Altuve's hitting streak is 8, and his batting average is .301, after he went 2x5 with a R tonight.
*Houston took a 1-0 lead in the 5th on a RBI groundout by George Springer. George finished 0x4 with a BB and 2 K.
*A RBI single by Jason Castro made that lead 2-0, and Jason finished 1x4 with a K.
*Chris Carter doubled as part of a 2x4, K night.
*L.J. Hoes also had a double, going 1x2 with a BB and a K.
*Jonathan Villar was 1x4 with a run scored and 2 K, but his throwing error in the 8th eventually led to 3 unearned White Sox runs.
*No hits for Dexter Fowler tonight, going 0x3 with 2 K, but he did walk twice more to keep the OBP up.
*Matt Dominguez (1x4) and Jesus Guzman (1x3) also had hits.
Turning Point:
A scoreless game turned to 2-0 Houston in the bottom of the 5th, and Collin McHugh began the 6th by striking out Gordon Beckham swinging. Conor Gillaspie walked, and McHugh had Jose Abreu down 0-2 when he hit him with a pitch, putting two on with one out. After falling behind 0-2, McHugh went back to his fastball, and Adam Dunn took it back to the second deck in right field, for an instant 3-2 turnaround. One pitch later, Dayan Viciedo doubled, and McHugh's night was done. Josh Zeid let Viciedo score on a Tyler Flowers single, though, before McHugh's book was officially closed.
Man of the Match:
Jose Altuve. Along with assorted starters, he's angling for that Astros All-Star spot again.
Goat of the Game:
Jonathan Villar. Yes, he scored a run, but he left 4 LOBsters himself, and his error gave Chicago 3 more runs.
