Astros are swept for first time this season
UNABLE TO PREVENT SWEEP, MUSGROVE ALLOWS 7 RUNS IN SHORTEST CAREER START
Defending AL champions expose back end of rotation
For as much as Dallas Keuchel and Lance McCullers Jr. have alleviated concerns about the top of the rotation, the rest of the Astros’ starters have called into question the team’s depth.
A weekend sweep by the Cleveland Indians underscored the deficiencies in the middle to back end of the Astros’ rotation.
The Nos. 4 and 5 starters have ERAs worse than 5 after Sunday afternoon, when Joe Musgrove was lit up in an 8-6 loss at Minute Maid Park.
Swept for the first time this season, the Astros have their first three-game losing streak since April 8. They lost five of six games in their season series against the Indians, the reigning American League champions they might see again in
October.
“To be honest with you,” Astros manager A.J. Hinch said, “the Indians outplayed us in just about every area.”
The Indians added a tally to the loss columns of all three Astros starters they faced this weekend: Charlie Morton, Mike Fiers and Joe Musgrove. Musgrove was shelled for seven runs on eight hits Sunday and failed to record an out in the fourth inning, making it the shortest of his 19 major league starts.
The miserable outing raised Musgrove’s ERA more than a full run, from 4.57 to a rotation-worst 5.63. The 24-year-old righthander has battled mechanics in his delivery all season. Lacking a feel for his slider and changeup Sunday, he said he felt like he was just a two-pitch pitcher between his fastball and curveball against the Indians.
“It’s tough right now,” he said. “I’ve been going through a real rough route the whole season, really. I’ve put together a couple good ones here and there, but I haven’t been myself, and I haven’t felt normal really the whole year.
“I think right now the important thing for me is to really not give up on myself. I’ve always been really mentally strong. But as soon as your mind and your heart start to become enemies, one of them’s got to lose. So I’ve got to really do a good job of staying on top of that.”
4 homers for Astros
The Astros scored all of their runs via home runs, two-run blasts by Jose Altuve and Marwin Gonzalez and solo shots by Carlos Beltran and Alex Bregman. Gonzalez and Bregman went back-toback off Indians reliever Zach McAllister with two outs in the ninth inning.
Musgrove (3-4) would probably be in danger of a demotion if the Astros had a ready alternative. But neither Francis Martes nor David Paulino, their top two prospects in Class AAA, has proved himself in the Pacific Coast League, and Brady Rodgers is lost for the season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Brad Peacock is filling in Monday for Keuchel, whom the team expects to miss just the one start because of a pinched nerve in his neck.
Musgrove allowed two runs in Sunday’s second inning, three in the third and two more in a fourth inning he didn’t survive. After inducing two quick ground-ball outs in the third, he issued consecutive walks and served up a 457-foot, three-run blast to Yan Gomes.
Singles by Jason Kipnis and Francisco Lindor to open the fourth ended Musgrove’s afternoon.
Lefthander Ashur Tolliver, recalled Saturday to take Keuchel’s spot on the active roster, allowed both inherited runners and one more to score. He followed that with three scoreless innings to help save the rest of the bullpen but was optioned back to Class AAA after the game so the team could call up a fresh arm.
Fine line for Musgrove
“With Joe, it’s a fine line of command and control and being inside the strike zone too much versus having his command and control fall apart,” Hinch said. “This is a good team across the way. We all know that. They’re an excellent team when you give them an extra 90 feet, and we did that multiple times with some walks. That’s a difficult way to live versus a good team.”
Although market dynamics render it unlikely the Astros will acquire a top- or middle-of-the-rotation starter before late July, they may need to proactively address their depth issues. While Keuchel and McCullers have combined for a 2.21 ERA in their 18 starts, Morton, Fiers and Musgrove have a cumulative 4.99 ERA.
The Indians outscored the Astros 16-9 in the three-game series. Morton allowed four runs on eight hits, including three home runs, in Friday’s opener to inflate his ERA to 4.26. Fiers pitched well Saturday, yielding only one earned run over six innings, but has an ERA of 5.14.
Musgrove was coming off two solid starts before Sunday’s clunker. He’s in line to start Friday against the Baltimore Orioles at Minute Maid Park.
“I’ve been trying to pick out what it is (in my delivery), and every outing I feel like I’m finding something different that I need to fix,” Musgrove said. “I don’t know if I’m piling up too many things to try and work on at one time. Maybe I need to simplify and just get back to the basic roots of my delivery and start working from there.
“But I know I’m going to hit my stride. And hopefully, I can just kind of stick it out through this little tough patch until I can find it.”