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Astros 4, Giants 3: Springer Celebrates Return To Lineup With Game Winning Homer

Team comes from behind thanks to powerful bats and solid bullpen work

By erniebreakfast
Welcome Back, George!
Welcome Back, George!
Scott Halleran/Getty Images

The Astros came into tonight's game trying to split this short two-game series with the Giants.  More importantly, they needed to get the bats going.  The team has been in a bit of a collective batting slump as most around these parts have noticed.  In the previous two games they have collected a total of 3 hits and 2 runs.  It did feel good tonight to get George Springer and Brett Oberholtzer back in the starting lineup after their stays on the DL.

Oberholtzer was having a pretty decent return to the mound until he was pulled when his blister problem returned.  He gave up one run in the first inning after a walk, a stolen base, and a Buster Posey single.  He only lasted 3 innings and gave up five hits and 2 walks.  He was the beneficiary of two double plays to limit any potential damage.  Samuel Deduno relieved Obie to start the fourth inning, and ended up having to pitch out of a bases loaded jam.  The Astros tied the game in the bottom of the inning with 2 outs when Giants starter Tim Hudson walked 2 batters then gave up an RBI single to Colby Rasmus.

In the 5th, Angel Pagan started the inning with a triple off of Deduno.  Posey followed that up by crushing a ball off the top of the left field wall above the Crawford Boxes to give the Giants a 3-1 lead.  Jason Castro led off the bottom of the inning with his second home run in as many nights to cut the deficit to one run.  Even though the next two batters would single they couldn't tie the game.  In the 6th Luis Valbuena hit his team-leading 8th home run into the right field bullpen to make the score 3-3.  The Astros relievers were solid and kept the score the same, which allowed Springer to provide the go-ahead heroics with an eighth inning solo homer to take the lead for the first time on the night.

Luke Gregerson, making his first appearance since coming back from a few days off to attend to a family emergency, had an interesting ninth inning to get his 8th save.  Brandon Crawford started the inning with a double.  Nori Aoki came up next and hit a grounder to shortstop Jonathan Villar, who made a great throw to Valbuena to cut down Crawford trying to advance to third for out number one.  After a strikeout and a single put runners on the corners with two down, Gregerson had to face Posey.  Buster took an awkward swing and softly bounced it out in front of Gregerson, who flipped it over to first for the final out.

So the Astros get a split of the two interleague games, and tomorrow will start a four-game set with the Toronto Blue Jays.  Roberto Hernandez will go against Drew Hutchison with the first pitch just after 7 pm.

Fun Facts

The Astros are now 13-0 when they hit multiple home runs in a game.

This is not scientific, but I think the only way Jason Castro can get a hit on a hard-hit ball is to hit it out of the park.  Someone let him know I found his secret to success.  Poor guy has hit more line drives that are right at folks than I have seen in a long time.  (Although that seems to be a team wide phenomenon, Castro seems to be the most unlucky.)

Chris Carter and Jose Altuve both ended 0-10 hitless streaks tonight, and Evan Gattis ended an 0-19 streak of his own.  (Slumping must be contagious...i guess breaking slumps must be too.)

Tweet of the Night

Thanks for coming...see you in a couple of weeks.

Like the X-Files, "I want to believe"

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