4-run sixth provides polish for Morton’s gem
PHILADELPHIA — Nick Pivetta, a 24-year-old righthander with 751⁄3 innings of major league experience, cruised through the first five innings of Tuesday night’s game at Citizens Bank Park.
Complementing a mid90s fastball with a swingand-miss slider, he retired 15 of the first 17 batters he faced.
An inning later, Pivetta was out of the game. And so it goes when facing baseball’s most relentless lineup.
In the sixth inning of their 5-0 shutout of the Phillies, the Astros strung together five hits in a sixbatter span and scored four runs, which proved more than enough support for starter Charlie Morton.
Morton (8-4) pitched a gem against the team for which he made four starts in an injury-shortened 2016. He allowed just three hits over seven scoreless innings and improved his ERA to 3.83 in 14 starts.
Relying on his sinker and curveball, Morton Astros update Tuesday: Astros 5, Phillies 0. Record: 67-33. Today: At Philadelphia, 6:05 p.m. Starting pitchers: Mike Fiers (7-4) vs. Aaron Nola (7-6). TV/radio: ATTSW; 790 AM, 94.1 FM (Spanish).
struck out nine and issued only one walk. He plunked two batters early but escaped damage in both instances.
“My delivery was a little weird tonight,” he said. “And then I kind of settled down and got into a little groove.”
Morton said he felt like his delivery clicked in the fourth inning.
“It’s a nice feeling to come back here,” said Morton, 33, who attended Phillies games at Veterans Stadium as a kid with his late grandfather. “It’s a pretty special start for me. I’m wondering if it’s going to be my last time pitching here. My mom’s side of the family is here. My wife’s side of
the family’s here. So, it was nice.”
Pivetta (3-6), who struck out seven, limited the Astros to one hit and one walk through five innings. The Astros inflicted some early damage in the third inning when Alex Bregman tripled and scored on a sacrifice fly to left field by Nori Aoki.
At the start of the bottom of the third inning, Bregman was absent from the field, with the third baseman having left the game because of what the Astros described as right hamstring discomfort. He suffered the injury rounding second base, according to Astros manager A.J. Hinch. Bregman was not available for comment after the game because he was undergoing treatment.
Yuli Gurriel moved from first base to third and Tyler White came off the bench to play first base.
“He got back to the dugout and complained a little bit of some tightness,” Hinch said of Bregman. “Nowadays, that’s an immediate removal the way the situation is and our depth. He’s day-to-day.”
Jose Altuve extended his hitting streak to 17 games with a one-out double in the sixth. After advancing to third base on a passed ball, he scored on a single by Josh Reddick to put the Astros ahead 2-0.
Gurriel kept the rally going with a single. After Evan Gattis struck out, Marwin Gonzalez ripped a run-scoring single up the middle to score Reddick. With Derek Fisher at the plate, Gurriel and Gonzalez executed a double steal. The just-recalled Fisher, who ran down balls in center field to make catches and end the first and second innings, shot a single to right field that scored both runners.
“We had a hard time with (Pivetta’s) fastball early and then as soon as we geared up fastball he would throw a few sliders,” Hinch said. “He threw a few more breaking balls than we expected. But I just think seeing guys over and over again, this team makes really good adjustments.”
After Morton completed seven innings, Hinch turned to struggling lefthander Tony Sipp for two batters. Sipp induced a popup from Freddy Galvis and a grounder from Nick Williams, who reached base on an error by Altuve.
At that point, Hinch summoned his latest-toemerge weapon — Francis Martes — to the mound. The 21-year-old righthander, dominant since moving to the bullpen, struck out Howie Kendrick on a 90 mph changeup and got Andres Blanco to fly out to center field and strand the runner on base.
Despite the Astros’ fiverun lead, Ken Giles was given the ninth against his former team. All four of the players he faced were former teammates of his in the minors or the majors. He struck out Maikel Franco and Tommy Joseph on power sliders before allowing a double to Cameron Rupp and inducing a game-ending groundout from Cameron Perkins.
“It was exciting. I had a lot of adrenaline going,” Giles said. “Not a lot of guys come back to pitch where they started. This place will always have a special place in my heart.”