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Lance Berkman 2 for 5 Scored one and drove one in |
That, my friends, is a satisfying win. Certainly was up and down, though:
Compiling the Expected Win Chart was fun but rather grueling, and I'm not gonna do one for every game, but I'm sure I'll break it out every once in a while.
I'm sure you've heard by now that the three runs the Astros scored in the eleventh were the first ones they've scored in extras all year. But 14 hits, with at least one from every position player who played in the game, is especially sweet.
It may be a mirage, but this looked like a fairly formidable team tonight. Not only did Biggio and Ensberg get clutch hits, Jose Vizcaino, and Adam Everett did, too. Not only did Pettitte, Wheeler and Lidge pitch tough, so did Russ Springer.
Astros pitchers struck out 13 and walked two, which further stretched our lead over the NL field in strikeout to walk ratio.
Jason Lane has not only hit in five straight, he has scored or driven in one in five straight. And Chad Qualls is starting to look the way he looked last year down the stretch. JD was calling him "nasty" yesterday, and he's now given up one run over his last seven appearances, which turn out to be seven innings.
Even the naysayers are gonna have to give a begrudging nod to Garner; his ploy to save Lidge for the bottom half of an inning in which we had the lead worked like he drew it up.
First extra inning victory, second road series win, sixth win in our last ten, and bitter crow to eat for Eric Simon and all the rest of the savages at Amazin' Avenue. All very very nice.
Next up is a tired and slumping Blue Jays squad. This could get good . . . .