I am sorry guys. I really am. I'm one of those superstitious baseball fans who has tried year after year to overcome my silly ways, but sometimes, I still believe that I really do affect the game, even though logically, I know I don't. That being said, this game WOULD be the first one I recap on this great site. It would. Anyway...
What went well:
- Marwin Gonzalez won everyone a free Chick-Fil-A sandwich by dinging the foul pole in the first inning, thereby giving the ‘Stros a 1-0 lead.
- Feldman started trying to pay back all the money the front office blew on him this winter by looking quite sharp through 7 innings of work. Final line: 7 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 1 K.
- Matt Dominguez saved Feldman’s skin by stabbing a Steven Vogt liner with one out and two on in the 4th, after which Kike Hernandez saved Feldman’s skin by making yet another catch whilst running straight back towards Tal’s Hill. These gallant defensive efforts preserved the ever-tenuous lead.
- Hernandez also was the offensive machine for the night, clubbing an RBI triple and double, which accounted for 2 of Houston’s 4 runs.
What went wrong:
- Josh Reddick did his best Gonzalez impression by aiming for the yellow pole, hoping to win everyone another Chick-Fil-A sandwich. He just missed it, but still knotted up the game at 1 in the 5th as the ball stayed fair.
- Jose Altuve got caught stealing, which doesn’t really happen that often.
- All of this losing is probably not good for anyone, but it seems to be especially not good for Chad Qualls. He gave up a homer against some guy on the Marlins on Saturday, and also gave up, uh, a lot of runs tonight. Closers need work to stay fresh, and it’s safe to say he isn’t getting it.
- Tony Sipp made his trade stock go down by giving up the game-winning RBI to Brandon Moss.
What we learned:
- Feldman perhaps made the trade talks surrounding Houston’s starting staff even more interesting by adding himself to the conversation. While he’s not a spring chicken like all of the other starters, it’s not too outlandish to think some contenders might fish for him and even be willing to take on his contact, since he has "experience" and whatnot.
- If the Astros were a soap opera, they wouldn't have any viewers. Watching the same episode of "Bullpen Blows Lead" over and over and over has gotten really, really stale.