Astros: terrible sequence leads to Maldonado injured and a loss

The Houston Astros looked to have struck first in the Bronx, as they looked to silence the uneducated fans of the New York Yankees. While Alex Bregman sent a solo shot over the wall in the first, a rough outing from Zack Greinke put the Yankees ahead early. The right-hander allowed three hit and four walks to his three strikeouts, and while three runners crossed home, Tuesday was plagued by Greinke’s early command issues in a 7-3 loss.

As Michael Brantley also shot one to the moon, the Astros missed out on runners in scoring position and weren’t touching the outfield grass enough. While opposing fans were letting the Astros hear it, it doesn’t seem like it was too much of an issue for the players with it only being 20% filled.

While the Astros struggled all around, one sequence ended the game for the team and Martin Maldonado.

The harsh conditions from opposing fans continued, and with Jose Altuve continuing his struggles in the leadoff spot, there wasn’t much run support late into the game. Greinke couldn’t get a long outing going, which led to short stints from Brandon Bielak and Bryan Abreu on the mound.

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The implosion started here, as Abreu finished loading the bases for Bielak, and a wonky throw from the arm of Bregman allowed three runners to score. This play could’ve been picked or stopped easily by Yuli Gurriel, but that comes down to opinion. While Rougned Odor was the final one to cross the plate, the second baseman ran through the body of Martin Maldonado, which led to both players exiting the game.

As Maldonado tested negative for a concussion, the catcher is day to day with a trapezius contusion. Manager Dusty Baker isn’t worried about Maldonado and mentioned how the team dodged another bullet. With Maldonado going down, Jason Castro will start on Wednesday, as the left-hander hasn’t been platooned as much as many had theorized.

The controversial calls from behind the plate also led to the Astros being in tough situations with runners on base. All around, the officiating sucked for both teams.

From 50 Cent moving to Houston to Pedro Leon wearing #4 and leading off on the farm, the Astros are starting to look different in a multitude of ways. The Astros are nearing their 85% threshold, as they are also providing vaccines to fans before Sunday’s game.

The Astros are back on the field on Wednesday at 6:05 p.m. against the Yankees, looking to tie the series. Luis Garcia is matching up against Jordan Montgomery in the game that looks easiest to win this series.