Rangers Lose To Astros
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HOUSTON — One productive plate appearance didn’t completely negate a season’s worth of struggles for Astros catcher Jason Castro, but it did provide enough satisfaction for Castro to revel in the moment.
Right-hander Collin McHugh produced his sixth consecutive start allowing two or fewer earned runs while Castro struck the biggest blow offensively with his fifth-inning grand slam in the Houston Astros’ 4-2 victory over the Texas Rangers on Thursday night at Minute Maid Park.
McHugh (7-9) improved to 3-0 with a 1.91 ERA in August by allowing two runs on eight hits with six strikeouts over seven innings. He did not walk a batter for the fifth time this season and third time this month while pitching at least seven innings for the sixth time in 2014.
The Astros (57-78) provided McHugh all the run support he needed when Castro hit his second career grand slam off right-hander Roman Mendez (0-1) in the fifth inning. Castro, an All-Star last season, entered the game batting .224 and with an OPS 175 points lower than 2013.
“Obviously any time you can put your team ahead it’s what you’re going to want to do,” Castro said. “I feel like I’ve been feeling pretty good and have been hitting the ball, just not getting any luck. This one was nice to
have, especially at this point of the year.
“I feel like I’m right where I want to be and I feel good, but the results haven’t been there. I’ve just been trying to do the same stuff and the results will eventually come, so I’m feeling pretty good with it.”
Right-hander Josh Fields and left-hander Tony Sipp preserved the lead by logging one perfect inning apiece, with Sipp notching his second save.
Texas (52-81) was 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position and stranded six in falling to 4-9 against Houston this season. The Rangers fell deeper into the American League West cellar, four games behind the Astros.
Rangers right-hander Nick Tepesch effectively dipped in and out of trouble for four innings until his luck ran out in the fifth.
After setting the Astros down in order in the first, Tepesch worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the second, induced an inning-ending double play from Astros center fielder Dexter Fowler with two on in the third, and pitched a scoreless fourth despite walking the leadoff hitter (Castro) and facing five batters in that inning.
When second baseman Jose Altuve and designated hitter Chris Carter singled and walked with one out in the fifth, Tepesch was lifted for Mendez.
“He was laboring,” Rangers manager Ron Washington said. “He had struggled from pitch one. Every inning he was in trouble. That inning there we got to the middle of the order, and I just felt like we needed to shut that inning down, but Mendez just couldn’t get it done. For me, Tepesch was laboring the whole game.”
Two batters later, Castro followed a Fowler infield single with a grand slam to right field, erasing a two-run deficit.
“It was long innings,” Tepesch said. “There were no clean innings; a lot of pitches per inning. It’s tough to pitch deep into games when you’re throwing a lot of pitches per inning.”
The Rangers didn’t make the most of their early scoring opportunities, loading the bases with no outs against McHugh in the third, yet coming away with only one run that inning. Texas also managed just one run in the first despite tallying three hits.
“To be able to get through seven (innings), to get our team through seven with the lead — still was all you’re looking for,” McHugh said.
