Other teams continue to insist on sending their left-handed pitchers out to get assassinated by Yordan Alvarez. The Astros beat the A's 3-2 on Saturday afternoon to improve to 26-19, still two games behind the Rangers, who are taking advantage of playing the Rockies at home. Houston is 9-1 in their last ten games and have won six straight.
1916 Philadelphia A's Watch, after 47 games:
1916 A's: 15-31-1
2023 A's: 10-37
*For the sixth time this season the Astros have hit a home run in three straight games.
*Hunter Brown struck out a career-high nine batters. Brown's last two starts: 11.2IP, 12H/4ER, 17K:1BB. It was his 4th start of the season with a Game Score of 65 or higher.
Brown struck out 9+ batters four times in 2021 (3 for Corpus and 1 for Sugar Land) and three times in 2022 (all for Sugar Land).
*Yordan hit his 10th home run of the season and the 108th of his career off of Ross Ryan Richard Dick Lovelady.
Yordan vs RHP, 2023: .276/.406/.552, 3 doubles / 7 homers
Yordan vs LHP, 2023: .316/.349/.597, 7 doubles / 3 homers.
54 of Yordan's home runs have come on the road, and 54 have come at home. Yesterday's home run was his 18th career home run against Oakland, most against any opponent in his career. A's Manager Mark Kotsay:
He's the one guy in the lineup you can't let beat you. It's a 3-1 slider that actually wasn't a bad pitch. From my angle, Yordan went out, it looked like he might have been sitting on the slider and hooked it to right field. He's a special player. I put him in the Trout category for sure.
Yordan, 2023: .292/.385/.569, 10 doubles / 10 homers, 39K:19BB.
Trout, 2023: .281/.373/.521, 10 doubles / 10 homers, 52K:20BB.
*Jose Altuve was 1x3 with a walk, getting a double for his first hit of the season. In the Chron: How Jose Altuve feels like a rookie again.
*Alex Bregman's stolen base was his first of the season, matching his season total in both 2021 and 2022.
*Lance McCullers will throw another bullpen today.
*McTaggart: What's next for Mauricio Dubon, now that Altuve is back?
*The Yankees DFAd Aaron Hicks. The Yankees still owe him about $25 million.
*The boy who caught (and lost) one of baseball's most famous home run balls.
*I have been listening to The Left Right Game podcast, and I've enjoyed it very much.
*Author Martin Amis passed away at the age of 73.
*It's halftime in the Leeds / West Ham game, tied 1-1. So I'm going to go throw up.
*A Musical Selection: