Monday Morning Hot Links

So the thing is - Yesterday's game was - Okay, the thing about yesterday's game is that. Houston lost 11-10 yesterday after being down 10-1. Collin McHugh was terrible. The Astros were terrible in that they made Shelby Miller look like a serviceable pitcher, who got his first win since April 2017. Houston is 13-8, 7-8 on the road. After 21 games they've played as many games in Arlington as they have in Houston. A seven-game homestand starts tonight. Fourteen of their next 20 games are at home.

It was the 40th time the Astros have hit five home runs in a game. They're now 35-5 in those games. The last time they hit 5HR and lost was September 16, 2009 in a 6-5 loss to Cincinnati. It was the first time since August 6, 2013 that the Astros scored 10+ runs in a game and lost.

Houston was 1-2 in 1-run games on the last road trip. For the 2nd straight series at Arlington, the Astros won the first game and then dropped the next two. Houston went 1-3 against Arlington in Verlander/Cole starts. That's dumb.

*For the second consecutive game an Astros starting pitcher had the worst start of their career. Saturday it was Gerrit Cole, then yesterday it was Collin McHugh's turn. McHugh: 3.1IP, 8H/10R (9ER), 1K:1BB, 2HR, 1HBP. McHugh:
It's really frustrating. Our team, we've got a lot of guys who can do a lot of damage, especially in hitting conditions like today. As a starting pitcher, your job has to be to keep it close and keep them in the game, and it got out of hand really early. I wasn't able to stop the bleeding in a couple of innings. 

Hinch:
At the end of the day you either win or you lose, but I think it's come to be expected that we're going to keep fighting, so I'm proud of our guys for that.

*There were a lot of ways the Astros could have won yesterday, but Joey Gallo's sky-high bloop was particularly stupid.

*Framber Valdez rejoined Houston yesterday and threw 2.1IP, 1H/1ER, 3K:3BB.

*Josh Reddick was 3x4 with a walk and an RBI. He has eight hits in his last four games, and has four multi-hit games since April 9.

*Houston went 1x5 w/RISP, Arlington went 4x9.

*If this kind of thing matters to you, Josh Reddick and his wife are expecting twins in October.

*Yordan Alvarez hit his 9th home run yesterday, and is hitting .315/.439/.870 in his first 16 games. The rest of the Round Rock Express have 23 home runs combined.

*Houston opens a series with the Minnesota Marwins tonight. Minnesota is 12-7, leading the AL Central by one game over Cleveland. They're coming off a sweep of the Orioles. Former Astros Great Marin Gonzalez is hitting .204/.271/.315, Jason Castro is hitting .200/.360/.300.

*How to survive solitary confinement.

*A Musical Selection: