Astros lose to Angels; fall further behind for AL supremacy

The Astros regular season home finale ended in disappointment.

Let’s cut to the chase, shall we? The Astros lost a baseball game on Sunday, which was their home finale for the 2017 regular season. The final was 7-to-5. Their opponent was the Los Angeles Angels. Formerly known as the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Before then, the Anaheim Angels. Also, the California Angels. Ironically, the Los Angeles Angels before then.

Full circle, right?

Don’t forget that Houston will experience at least two postseason games in Minute Maid Park. So, take solace in that!

Back to the game, which was a weird one for the Astros. For example, Lance McCullers threw 63 pitches over just 3.1 innings.

McCullers only allowed two runs but the fact he didn’t go past the fourth inning was, um, interesting. The Astros likely didn’t want to push him too much, but it would’ve been nice to see him pitch further into the game. To be fair, though, McCullers has only pitched in two major league games since the end of July. Sunday’s start was the second appearance.

The offense provided a spark as George Springer, Alex Bregman and Evan Gattis provided key hits to help the cause. Two home runs and a double to be exact.

Unfortunately for them, the cause was a losing one.

A primary culprit in the Astros’ defeat was the lack of execution by the bullpen along with a missed play or two in the field. Francis Martes looks less likely to be on the postseason roster, especially following his appearance on Sunday. Chris Devenski had a ground ball off his ankle turn into a baserunner. Alex Bregman had an error. Luke Gregerson continues to look mortal.

At least the Astros continued their shift shenanigans going against Albert Pujols.

Next: Astros have plenty of options for the playoff rotation

All in all, it took the Astros eight pitchers to get through this game. Hopefully they can cut down on that number as they take on the Rangers in Arlington and the Red Sox in Boston to close out the regular season.

**Statistics courtesy of MLB.com**