Win dampened by another Correa injury
HOUSTON — An injury to Carlos Correa gave significance to a game that otherwise would have gone as expected and was nearly meaningless.
The Astros’ starting shortstop exited with back discomfort after his first at-bat Monday night.
He then told manager A.J. Hinch that before the game his back felt tight.
“He was sore,” Hinch said. “He said he never got loose, never got comfortable.”
Hinch was neither panicked nor optimistic: “We’ll hope for the best.”
The rebuilding Tigers got the experience they sought. The Astros got a 5-4 victory that turned out to be be harder than expected, but Houston might have traded in the win for a chance to get through the game without injury.
Correa missed 50 games earlier this season because of a fractured rib he said he suffered from a massage. The injuryplagued star also dealt with back pain that flared up every time he swung during last year’s American League Championship Series against the Red Sox.
Correa’s quick exit aside, the best inspiration the Tigers could hope to see at Minute Maid Park was what their future might be like if their plan works out. They could look out at the field, in to
to a higher draft pick, and a competitive effort, much like the cardiovascular benefits of running hills in the freezing rain, would be a healthful challenge to their youngsters.
“This is our playoffs when we get to play teams like this,” Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire said of a lineup with five players in their rookie or second seasons. “They better learn, or they’ll get blown up.”
The Tigers began the game with four consecutive singles, including a textbook leadoff bunt, off lefthander Wade Miley to jump ahead 1-0. The Astros matched the four hits and outscored the Tigers 4-1 by the end of the first inning.
Detroit started righthander Edwin Jackson (3-6, 8.46 ERA) , who is pitching for a major-league record 14th team in his 17th season.
Michael Brantley walked and Alex Bregman singled for his fifth hit in as many at-bats. With an inside-out swing, Yordan Alvarez lined a cut fastball the other way for a double that split the outfielders, letting Brantley jog in to score.
Yuli Gurriel’s two-out double drove in two more runs. Robinson Chirinos pounced on the first pitch for a single to left field, where Brandon Dixon let the ball roll underneath his glove and to the wall.
Gurriel scored easily. Jackson, sulking on his walk to the dugout, removed his glove and swung it, as if batting away the negativity. He managed to get through five innings and allow only one additional run.
Correa’s injury spoiled manager A.J. Hinch’s plan to rest second baseman Jose Altuve. Altuve replaced Correa and Jack Mayfield, who had been called up from Class AAA Round Rock, switched from second to short.
Going from a day off to a demanding effort, Altuve ran out a dribbler in his first at-bat and went first-to-third on Gurriel’s second single. Altuve put the Astros ahead 5-2 on a sacrifice fly by Chirinos.
Gardenhire, a 61-year-old managing his 15th season, and designated hitter Miguel Cabrera, a surefire Hall-of-Famer playing his 17th season, showed the Tigers’ fighting spirit.
They were ejected in the fifth inning for arguing from the dugout.
Shortly after, Detroit cut Houston’s lead to one run with a pair of home runs. Ronny Rodriguez homered off Miley, who gave up three runs in 52⁄3 innings, and Travis Demeritte went deep off Hector Rondon.
The momentum swung: batters reached base 40 times in the game, but from the sixth inning on, the Tigers had six hits and the Astros had one.
Astros righthander Will Harris, who had allowed two earned runs in his previous 16 appearances, labored with two outs in the eighth. He issued a walk and got unlucky on a bloop single, which put runners on the corners.
It seemed then that game would be decided on the next atbat.
Harris climbed back from a 2-1 count to strike out Demeritte and escape the jam.
Harris, sporting a new goatee, roared and pumped his arms. He would not earn the save, but he deserved as much credit as Roberto Osuna would get for his 29th save.
Osuna stranded a runner on third with a game-ending strikeout. His roar and fist pump came with something Harris' did not: fireworks.