Tweet
Playing at home could be enough to revive the Houston Astros’ slumping offense.
The Astros hope for another big offensive night as they continue their series with the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday.
Houston (32-30) avoided a third straight loss by beating St. Louis 6-1 in Friday’s series opener. It was the first time in nine games the Astros scored more than three runs.
Astros manager Cecil Cooper switched up his lineup by sitting regulars Miguel Tejada and leadoff hitter Michael Bourn after the club was outscored 37-13 in losing seven of their last eight contests on a 2-7 road trip.
“It serves two purposes,” said veteran Mark Loretta, who replaced Tejada and went 4-for-4. “You try to get a couple of guys a little bit of rest who’ve been grinding and then you get some of the reserve guys swinging the bats.”
Series at a Glance
Geoff Blum and Kaz Matsui each had two hits and drove in a run for Houston, which is 16-9 and averages 5.3 runs at hitter-friendly Minute Maid Park—more than a run better than on the road.
The Astros recorded 11 hits and took advantage of two St. Louis errors to avoid a third consecutive loss to the Cardinals (36-27), who have lost back-to-back games.
Lance Berkman’s batting average dipped to .377 after going 0-for-3 Friday, ending his 10-game hitting streak. He’s hitting .314 (11-for-35) with four homers and six RBIs against St. Louis in 2008.
Though the Astros have scored six runs in each of their last two home contests, they’ll be in for a challenge against St. Louis starter Adam Wainwright on Saturday.
Wainwright (5-3, 3.12 ERA) allowed a run and three hits over eight innings of a 6-1 home win on May 28 to improve to 2-0 versus the Astros this season and 4-0 with a 1.95 ERA in five lifetime starts.
The right-hander, though, allowed five runs and seven hits—including a grand slam—in eight innings of a 5-4 loss to Pittsburgh on Monday.
“It’s the worst I’ve ever felt after a game,” said Wainwright, who couldn’t hold a 4-0 lead in his most recent outing.
The Astros, who received seven scoreless innings from starter Brian Moeller on Friday, hope for a strong outing from Saturday’s starter Shawn Chacon. After not factoring in his first nine decisions, Chacon (2-1, 4.41) has won two of his last three starts, but allowed four runs while walking two and hitting two batters in just one inning of a 10-1 loss at Milwaukee on Sunday.
The right-hander is 1-0 with a 2.70 ERA in two starts against St. Louis in 2008. He allowed two runs in seven innings of Houston’s 8-2 win at St. Louis on May 27.
St. Louis scored 19 runs in taking two of three from Washington this week, but was held to four hits Friday, one day after splitting a doubleheader with the Nationals.
“It didn’t have anything to do with the long day,” St. Louis manager Tony La Russa said. “That’s just baseball. We were ready to play.”
Skip Schumaker had two hits and drove in the lone run for the Cardinals, who are among the top scoring teams in the majors with 290 runs.
Albert Pujols, who has been bothered by a strained left calf, went 0-for-4 but is still batting .412 (14-for-34) with five homers and eight RBIs in 10 games versus Houston this season.
The Astros hope for another big offensive night as they continue their series with the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday.
Houston (32-30) avoided a third straight loss by beating St. Louis 6-1 in Friday’s series opener. It was the first time in nine games the Astros scored more than three runs.
Astros manager Cecil Cooper switched up his lineup by sitting regulars Miguel Tejada and leadoff hitter Michael Bourn after the club was outscored 37-13 in losing seven of their last eight contests on a 2-7 road trip.
“It serves two purposes,” said veteran Mark Loretta, who replaced Tejada and went 4-for-4. “You try to get a couple of guys a little bit of rest who’ve been grinding and then you get some of the reserve guys swinging the bats.”
Series at a Glance
- St. Louis 1
Houston 6
Fri, Jun 6 - Final - St. Louis at
Houston
Sat, Jun 7 - 7:05 pm ET - St. Louis at
Houston
Sun, Jun 8 - 2:05 pm ET
Geoff Blum and Kaz Matsui each had two hits and drove in a run for Houston, which is 16-9 and averages 5.3 runs at hitter-friendly Minute Maid Park—more than a run better than on the road.
The Astros recorded 11 hits and took advantage of two St. Louis errors to avoid a third consecutive loss to the Cardinals (36-27), who have lost back-to-back games.
Lance Berkman’s batting average dipped to .377 after going 0-for-3 Friday, ending his 10-game hitting streak. He’s hitting .314 (11-for-35) with four homers and six RBIs against St. Louis in 2008.
Though the Astros have scored six runs in each of their last two home contests, they’ll be in for a challenge against St. Louis starter Adam Wainwright on Saturday.
Wainwright (5-3, 3.12 ERA) allowed a run and three hits over eight innings of a 6-1 home win on May 28 to improve to 2-0 versus the Astros this season and 4-0 with a 1.95 ERA in five lifetime starts.
The right-hander, though, allowed five runs and seven hits—including a grand slam—in eight innings of a 5-4 loss to Pittsburgh on Monday.
“It’s the worst I’ve ever felt after a game,” said Wainwright, who couldn’t hold a 4-0 lead in his most recent outing.
The Astros, who received seven scoreless innings from starter Brian Moeller on Friday, hope for a strong outing from Saturday’s starter Shawn Chacon. After not factoring in his first nine decisions, Chacon (2-1, 4.41) has won two of his last three starts, but allowed four runs while walking two and hitting two batters in just one inning of a 10-1 loss at Milwaukee on Sunday.
The right-hander is 1-0 with a 2.70 ERA in two starts against St. Louis in 2008. He allowed two runs in seven innings of Houston’s 8-2 win at St. Louis on May 27.
St. Louis scored 19 runs in taking two of three from Washington this week, but was held to four hits Friday, one day after splitting a doubleheader with the Nationals.
“It didn’t have anything to do with the long day,” St. Louis manager Tony La Russa said. “That’s just baseball. We were ready to play.”
Skip Schumaker had two hits and drove in the lone run for the Cardinals, who are among the top scoring teams in the majors with 290 runs.
Albert Pujols, who has been bothered by a strained left calf, went 0-for-4 but is still batting .412 (14-for-34) with five homers and eight RBIs in 10 games versus Houston this season.
Comment