Astros AM Breakdown: Balks and Brooms in Arlington

The Astros enter the off-day on Monday with a 42-25 record and riding a five-game winning streak.

Thanks to a ninth-inning balk, the Astros were able to retake the lead and finish off a four-game sweep of the Rangers in Arlington.

Seriously, a balk. Not something you see every day in baseball.

Contrary to the start of Sunday’s game, the in-state affair became much more interesting in the later innings. But the early innings was all Houston, even from the first pitch thanks to George Springer.

By the time the second inning was over the team had jumped to a 6-0 lead. Unfortunately for Houston, Dallas Keuchel didn’t exactly perform as one would hope.

Needless to say, Keuchel didn’t locate his pitches like he usually would.

And Keuchel was not pleased by his latest start, to the surprise of no one.

Over his last 42 innings, the bearded southpaw has a 4.93 ERA with 49 hits and 23 earned runs. Only time will tell if Keuchel can reverse his recent misfortune on the mound.

On a more positive note, Jose Altuve made some franchise history on Sunday afternoon.

This latest bout also happened to be Houston’s first-ever four-game sweep of the Rangers.

And Carlos Correa sounds close to a return to the field.

In minor league news, Hooks’ infielder Randy Cesar‘s consecutive game hit streak is now 32 games.

And Houston agreed to terms with first-round draft pick Seth Beer. Cue the beer puns starting now.

Houston Astros News and Notes From Around FanSided

Houston wins a game where Charlie Morton was historically wild [Climbing Tal’s Hill – Eric Huysman]

Reliever Joe Smith to the DL as Reymin Guduan is recalled [Climbing Tal’s Hill – Eric Huysman]

Houston Astros: Important dates to look for in the month of June [House Of Houston – T.A. Mock]

More Houston Astros and General Baseball News From Around the Internet

First-round pick Beer reaches deal with Astros [MLB.com – Brian McTaggart]

How the “Opener” Spread to the Dodgers [FanGraphs – Travis Sawchik]

Astros pull ahead on balk, sweep Rangers [MLB.com –Alyson Footer]

Next: Astros win a game where Charlie Morton was historically wild

We hope you enjoyed this edition of AM Breakdown.

**Statistics and information courtesy of MLB.com**