*Houston is 16-7, matching the best 23-game start in franchise history set by the 1980 and 2015 teams, both of whom would go on to win the World Series in 2017.
*Houston got seven hits and drew seven walks for the 3rd time this season. The last time the Astros drew seven walks in a game came all the way back on Saturday night against the White Sox. The Astros outscored Chicago 27-2, racking up 36 hits (nine doubles, five home runs), 25K:18BB. Houston raised their team OPS from .705 to .740 in these three games.
*It's Houston's sixth straight win, five of which the Astros scored 7+ runs. Hinch:
We put a lot of pressure on them offensively and on the bases, and not giving up hardly any runs helps. Again, when we can play all facets of the game we are a tough team to match up with.
*Evan Gattis hit his first home run of the season, in the 9th inning. Gattis hit his first home run of 2017 on April 22. It's the 115th home run of his career: 58 at home, 57 away.
*As a team the Astros have hit 23 home runs through 23 games. At this point in the 2017 season, Houston had hit 28 home runs.
*Carlos Correa had two hits and two walks and is hitting .351/.409/.584. He has a 7-game hitting streak and has been on base 2+ times in all of them.
*Mercy of mercies! Jake Marisnick got a hit (to go with two strikeouts), pinch-hitting for Derek Fisher, to lead off the 7th inning. Altuve would drive him in as the go-ahead run. Marisnick was 0x22 with 14 strikeouts in between hits.
*Lance McCullers threw 6IP, 8H/1ER, 3K:1BB. It's the second 6IP/3K game of his career, last one was May 23, 2017 at Miami.
*Having turned just ten double plays all season long, the Astros turned four double plays yesterday, the most since they turned five on August 19, 2017.
*Ken Giles threw another scoreless outing. Since allowing his last run on April 6, Giles has thrown 4IP, 1H/0ER, 1K:0BB. He has three strikeouts in 7IP this season.
*McTaggart notes that the Astros' bullpen has thrown the 4th-fewest IP in MLB, now at 65IP. Leading the way in MLB is the Angels (who come to town tonight) at 99.2IP. The Rangers are 7th, with 84IP.
*The Astros offered support for Danny Farquhar, who is still in critical condition after suffering a brain hemorrhage in the dugout on Friday night.
*Brandon Belt had a 21-pitch AB yesterday breaking Ricky Gutierrez's 20-pitch AB record against Bartolo Colon on June 26, 1998. Colon got the win, a 4-2 loss for the Astros, throwing 8IP, 5H/2ER, 7K:1BB. Heading into the 8th inning, Colon had thrown just 84 pitches. Gutierrez led off the 8th with this sequence: Strike swinging, Strike swinging, Foul, Ball, Foul Ball, Foul, Foul, Foul, Foul, Foul, Foul, Ball, Foul, Foul, Foul, Foul, Foul, Foul, Strike swinging.
Kevin Bass had a 19-pitch AB in the 9th inning on July 23, 1988 against
