Shorthanded Astros swept by rival Rangers
Despite sweep at hands of Texas, Hinch not panicking as big road trip begins
With stars Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa on the disabled list, the Astros fall to Texas 4-3, getting swept by their state rivals and losing a fourth straight game for the first time this season.
The Astros got absolutely nothing out of their final series of the year against the Texas Rangers, and that’s what manager A.J. Hinch plans to take from it — nothing, nada, zilch, zip.
The American League West leaders took off Sunday night for an eight-game road trip having lost four in a row for the first time this season, the latest a 4-3 defeat to the Rangers before 40,560 at Minute Maid Park, with their double-play combination on the disabled list, their bats in a deep freeze and their starting pitchers unable of late to get out of the sixth inning.
Managing, however, is knowing what not to say as well as knowing when not to speak up, and Hinch for now will take the latter tack as the Astros prepare for a three-game series against the Mariners, who have crept within four games of the divi-
sion lead, on the heels of Houston’s frustrating 3-5 stretch since the All-Star break.
“I don’t want to talk about it. I don’t want to do much about it,” Hinch said. “We’re getting beaten up. We’ve got some things to address. We’re not working as perfectly as we normally do, but I’m going to try to take absolutely nothing away from this series.”
The Astros lost despite striking out 19 Rangers hitters, a team record for a nine-inning game, and despite a 3-for-3 game with a walk and a homer by Tyler White, who caught a redeye flight from Fresno, Calif., through Chicago to Houston to fill the roster spot created when second baseman Jose Altuve went on the 10-day disabled list with a sore right knee.
Lance McCullers Jr. (10-6) struck out seven through four innings and took a one-hitter into the fifth but took the loss after the Rangers put up three runs in the sixth. He had 11 strikeouts with no walks and allowed four runs, three earned.
It was this sort of game: A ball got stuck beneath the outfield wall padding in left field for a Rangers ground-rule double. The key moment in Texas’ threerun sixth came when a ball targeted for shortstop Alex Bregman instead deflected off McCullers’ wrist for a base hit.
With Altuve and shortstop Carlos Correa on the disabled list, the Astros played Yuli Gurriel at second base for the first time this season, and a Gurriel error contributed to the Rangers’ three-run sixth.
“This is a small, small little sample in a really long season,” Hinch said. “If you’re going to look for me to panic, you should look elsewhere.”
But McCullers captured the essence of the final three games of the seasson between the Astros and Rangers.
“We got swept,” he said. “We got swept by the worst team in the division, record-wise. It’s always tough to swallow.
“But baseball is a lot of games, man. We’re still in first place with a big, big series coming up in Seattle. We’ve got to turn the page.”
The game turned in the sixth inning as Texas took a 4-1 lead. Second baseman Rougned Odor led off with a double, and shortstop Jurickson Profar’s shot up the middle hit McCullers’ wrist and bounced off for a base hit, scoring Odor.
Profar took second when the Astros left second base unoccupied but paid for it when Gurriel stumbled backward in an attempt to cover the bag and spiked Profar under the left eye. Profar left the field to receive medical treatment but returned with his face bandaged.
Profar took third on a wild pitch, and the Rangers caught another break when Gurriel whiffed on a ground ball by Isiah Kiner-Falefa, with Profar scoring on the error. Ronald Guzman followed with a shot to the base of the center-field wall, the Rangers’ fourth double in seven batters, to score Kiner-Falefa and end McCullers’ day.
“I can’t throw the ball much better except maybe getting the grounder that came back to me or letting it go so Bregman could catch it, and everything would have played out smoothly from that,” McCullers said.
Rangers starter Mike Minor (7-6), pitching for the fifth time against the Astros this season, allowed two runs and four hits through six innings with eight strikeouts. Alex Claudio and Jose Leclerc each pitched scoreless innings.
“That was the best I’ve seen (Minor) this year,” Bregman said. “He was commanding four pitches. Everything he did, he did well.”
The Astros got a run back in the sixth on a Bregman sacrifice fly but stranded two, as they did in the seventh after the first two batters reached base against Claudio.
In the ninth, Rangers closer Keone Kela walked two and allowed an RBI single to Tony Kemp but got George Springer to pop out to catcher Robinson Chirinos to end the game.
Now it’s off to face Seattle, followed by a return to Dodger Stadium for the first time since the 2017 World Series and two games against the Giants.
“This game ain’t easy,” Bregman said. “You battle, and you move on to the next pitch.
“One thing this team is good at is moving on after we get beat. We move on and put it behind us and set our sights on the next game.”