Jesse Chavez (8-6, 3.14) vs Brett Oberholtzer (2-7, 4.32)
The Astros scored five runs in a weekend sweep by the Marlins. Then they welcomed the MLB-best Oakland A's to town. So of course tonight they went home run happy, going deep four times, including three in the 6th, and Houston did against Oakland what they couldn't do all weekend against Miami - win a baseball game. All Astros runs came in on long balls, and they beat the A's 7-3, improving to 43-63 overall. The win is Houston's 7th this July (7-15), making this officially their best July since they went 13-11 in July 2010.
On the Mound:
*With Brad Peacock sent down to AAA, Brett Oberholtzer's spot in the rotation has been cemented (at least for now). He celebrated tonight by doing what he did last week, holding the A's lineup in check all night. Oakland put up single tallies against Obie in the 2nd, 3rd (on a Stephen Vogt HR), and 5th, but that was still good enough for his third straight quality start - all games which Houston has won. Tonight's line: 6.2 IP / 8 H / 3 R / 3 ER / 1 BB / 2 K.
*Josh Fields got the last out of the 7th and the first two of the 8th (with a single in between), for one scoreless inning of work.
*Then Tony Sipp got the last out of the 8th and the first two of the 9th, before walking two to bring Stephen Vogt back to the plate. The threat (if there was one) stopped there, however, as Sipp got Vogt to fly out to center, ending the game.
At the Plate:
*Home runs for everybody! Tonight was the third game of the season in which Houston hit at least four over the fence (4 @ MIN 6/8, 5 v. LAA 4/6).
*cHRis Carter's came first - a 3-run blast to left-center in the 3rd that changed a 2-0 deficit into a 3-2 lead at the time. The home run was Carter's 21st of the season, moving him one up on the injured George Springer for the team lead. Carter finished 1x3 with a BB, 2 R, and 3 RBI.
*Carter's walk came in the 6th, which Jason Castro followed with his own HR, going deep into the Astros' bullpen in right-center for his 10th of the year. Jason finished 1x4 with a R, 2 RBI, and a K.
*Marc Krauss went back-to-back with Castro, taking Jesse Chavez to the back of the second deck in RF for his 5th, and finishing his day 1x3 with a R, a RBI, and 2 K.
*Then one out later, Matt Dominguez hit the most impressive shot of all, off the glass behind @AstrosTrainGuy's tracks above LF - #13 on the year for Matty D. He finished 1x3 with a R, a RBI, and K.
*Jose Altuve kept a 10-game hitting streak alive with a 3rd inning single, and was robbed of another hit by a diving Josh Reddick in the 7th, so he ended up 1x4 with a R.
*Kiké Hernandez singled once, walked once, and scored once, finishing 1x2 tonight.
*Marwin Gonzalez had the other Houston hit, going 1x4 with 2 K.
Turning Point:
Houston's Home Run Derby in the 6th. With the score tied 3-3, Marwin Gonzalez led off and lined out. Then Chris Carter walked, and Jason Castro went deep. Then Marc Krauss went deeper. Then Oakland changed pitchers, Jonathan Singleton flied out, then Matt Dominguez went deepest of all. 7-3 Astros, and the five-game losing streak was snapped.
Man of the Match:
Plenty o' bats, but we'll give it to cHRis Carter, for driving in three and scoring a fourth.
Goat of the Game:
Jon Singleton had at least a walk, so Robbie Grossman as the only starter not to reach base - 0x3.
