In their final series before the All-Star Break, the Houston Astros took on a division rival, the Texas Rangers. Texas took an early two-run lead in the first inning and never relinquished its lead as the Rangers defeated Houston 7-3. That loss for the Astros put their record at 55-39 with two games left before the break.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Texas didn’t waste any time taking the early lead on the road.
Josh Smith began with a groundout to Brice Matthews, who was recently elevated from Triple A. Corey Seager then singled into right field, and Astros starting pitcher Lance McCullers Jr hit Marcus Semien with a pitch. Adolis Garcia struck out before Wyatt Langford loaded the bases on an infield single. Evan Carter then drove in a pair of runs on a single to give the Rangers the 2-0 advantage, with Jake Burger being the third out on a lineout to center field.
At the bottom of the opening frame, Houston All-Star third baseman Isaac Paredes led off with a base hit into left field. Texas’s starting pitcher, Jack Leiter, proceeded to walk rookie Cam Smith to put runners on first and second base. Those runners advanced a base on a groundout by Jose Altuve and did the same thing again when Christian Walker grounded out to second base. That allowed Paredes to cut it to a one-run game.
After a hitless second inning where both pitchers punched out two batters each, the Rangers built on their lead at the top of the third. Semien struck out to open the frame, but Garcia went yard on a 2-0 count for the solo home run. After Langford was rung up, Carter walked, and Burger reached on an infield single. DH Jonah Heim then hit a two-run double into right field to give the Rangers the 5-1 lead.
Houston skipper Joe Espada called it a day for McCullers Jr after three innings of work and transitioned to Steven Okert. In his 10 pitches on the mound, the 34-year-old allowed one hit and recorded two putouts before being taken out for Ryan Gusto.
The Astros cracked back in the fifth with Walker getting a leadoff single, and Victor Caratini answered that hit with a two-run blast to cut the deficit to two. Caratini’s 10th home run of the season went 339 feet over the right field wall.
Things didn’t get any easier for the Houston Astros as the game moved into the seventh inning. Gusto walked Seager but struck out and forced Garcia into a flyout. That progress was halted when Langford hit Texas’s second two-run homer on the night that put them ahead by four heading into the bottom of the frame.
Gusto lasted just one inning for the Astros and made it through the eighth, finishing with five hits and two runs allowed compared to four strikeouts in 4.1 innings of work. Kaleb Ort was Houston’s closing pitcher and struck out two of his four batters faced as the offense was down to their final three outs.
Any chance of a comeback was shut down quickly as the Houston offense went three-up-three-down at the bottom of the ninth. Matthews flew out, Cooper Hummel pinch-hit for Taylor Trammell, only to ground out to Texas’s shortstop. That left it up to Paredes, who swung and missed for the final out of the game, securing the 7-3 loss, their 39th of the season.
BIG NUMBER: 4
The last time the Astros lost multiple games in a row was on June 8th and 10th when they fell to the Guardians and White Sox. Since the sweep against the Dodgers, Houston has lost four in a row as the Rangers move to within 8.5 games of the division lead.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Wyatt Langford
Houston’s pitching staff struggled to get Langford out in Friday’s contest. Trenton, Florida’s very own, went 4/5 from the plate, including a two-run home run as the Rangers took down the Astros 7-3 in game one of the series.
UP NEXT: Game two between the Houston Astros and Texas Rangers is set for Saturday, July 12th. First pitch from Daikin Park is scheduled for 6:35 pm, and the action can be heard on ESPN 103.7 Lafayette and 104.1 Lake Charles.