Houston Astros end four game losing streak in style

It seems sometimes the Houston Astros are their own worse enemy but were able to pull out the win on a walk-off double by Hunter Pence. The Astros blew a 3-0 lead but held on for a 4-3 win thanks to the double by Pence in the bottom of the ninth that brought catcher J.R. Towles home for the winning run. The win helped the Astros avoid a sweep at the hands of the Reds and ended a four game losing skid. The new improved offense was not helping the struggling pitching staff over the past four games as the Astros were outscored 24-5.

Today was a different story as the Astros jumped out to a 3-0 lead after the third inning. Michael Bourn had a two run single in the second with the bases loaded that brought Matt Downs and Brian Bogusevic home. Matt Downs followed this up with a sacrifice fly in the third that brought Brett Wallace home. But the Reds bullpen shut down the Astros offense after Edison Volquez got pulled after only four innings of work. Hunter Pence was able to get an important hit in the seventh that extended his hitting streak to 15 games.

Heading into the seventh inning, everything was going right for the Astros as they were up 3-1, Wandy was looking like the pitcher Astros’ fans have come to expect, and the first out of the inning was a great defensive play by Hunter Pence. The Reds had other plans though as Chris Heisey and Drew Stubbs hit back to back home runs to tie the game at 3. Wandy was able to get out of the inning and his final stat line read 10 hits, 3 earned runs and 4 strikeouts. Wilton Lopez and Mark Melancon finished the game out with perfect 8th and 9th innings.

This ended an important stretch for the Astros were they played 18 straight division games. They finished with a less than spectacular 7-11 record but they get to welcome the New York Mets to Houston on Friday for a three game series. The Astros played the Mets last month and won two of three so hopefully the Astros can start to get on a roll as we move through the month of May.