ASTROS PITCHER MUSGROVE IMPRESSES IN FINAL TUNEUP
Young right-hander works four scoreless innings for Astros.
Kyle Hendricks HOUSTON — and Joe Musgrove each wrapped up successful springs with solid starts Friday.
Hendricks yielded two hits and struck out three over five scoreless innings to help the Chicago Cubs beat the Houston Astros 6-3 in the teams’ last tuneup before opening day.
Musgrove, a right-hander, allowed three hits with four strikeouts over four scoreless innings for Houston.
Hendricks, who led the majors with a 2.13 ERA last season, was 2-0 with a 1.66 ERA in six starts this spring for the reigning World Series champions.
Carlos Correa singled off Hendricks to start the second inning before he walked Josh Reddick. But Hendricks allowed just one runner after that, on a single by George Springer in the third.
“That was the only (spot) over the five innings where for two, three hitters there it wasn’t sharp,” Hendricks said of the first two batters in the second inning. “Once I got that popup, it came right back and I got back into the groove. The fourth inning was good and my fifth was probably my best inning. So to finish strong, I was happy with that.”
Musgrove, 24, finished the spring 3-0 with a 2.08 ERA in seven starts and enters the season as Houston’s fourth starter.
“That’s definitely what you’re looking for in the spring, to have a last outing like that,” Musgrove said. “I was really pleased with everything. Slider was sharp. I had good fastball command. I was most pleased with my ability to command the top of the strike zone, which is huge for me.”
It will be the first time he’s opened the season in the majors after going 4-4 with a 4.06 ERA in 11 outings as a rookie last year after being called up in August.
After Musgrove left, the Cubs greeted reliever Tony Sipp for three runs in the fifth and got another one off Ken Giles in the inning to take a 4-0 lead.
Matt Szczur and Ian Happ added an RBI apiece off Will Harris in the Chicago seventh.
Astros: Lefty Dallas Keuchel is set to start Monday when the Astros open against Seattle. Keuchel, the 2015 AL Cy Young award winner, is looking to bounce back after a disappointing 2016 when he went 9-12 with a 4.55 ERA.
Cubs: Shortstop Addison Russell was in the lineup for the second straight day after missing more than a week because of back soreness. He went 0 for 2 after homering and driving in three runs Thursday night.