It isn’t often we see a pitching staff strike out 18 and still allow eight earned runs (nine total).
If my Stathead search is accurate, Monday’s game between the Astros and Tigers is only the 13th time to ever feature a team striking out at least 18 hitters while allowing at least eight earned runs and only the fourth in nine innings. And the first instance occurred in 2006. So, yeah, Houston made some history. Whether thats good or bad is up to your interpretation and rooting interest.
Kai-Wei Teng had his moments in this game. 14 whiffs on 30 swings is generally a positive development. The problem was that he can’t stop allowing runs, now up to 14 in his last 12.1 innings. Three home runs allowed. With Hunter Brown coming back on Tuesday, Houston will have no lack of options to start. However, the conversation now centers around on who will get removed from the rotation. While Tatsuya Imai and Mike Burrows have struggled this season, Teng is the most logical candidate due to his experience as a reliever. I wonder if that’s for the best when taking into account the velocity issues in today’s start for Teng, trending down 1.4 mph for his four-seam.
Other than a three-run third inning, the Astros couldn’t generate much offense. Isaac Paredes and Jose Altuve going back-to-back was cool to watch, scoring those three runs. Otherwise, Houston couldn’t figure out Detroit’s bullpen after forcing Drew Anderson to depart after only 2.2 innings.
In other words, this game didn’t end well. Colt Keith hit three home runs and drove in six runs. Now 33-41, the Astros remain on the fringe of the postseason chase. On the plus side, Hunter Brown vs Framber Valdez throw tomorrow. That’s, fingers crossed, a good matchup.
Feature photo from Astros on X
