Rangers Lose Home Opener
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ARLINGTON, Texas — Houston Astros starting pitcher Collin McHugh picked up right where he left off in his impressive rookie season as one of the Astros’ most reliable arms, turning in a five-hit gem to spoil the Texas Rangers’ home opener, 5-1, Friday afternoon at Globe Life Park.
The day for Rangers starter Derek Holland went the exact opposite way. He left after one inning with an injury to his throwing shoulder that could keep him from picking up a baseball for a month.
McHugh won his eighth consecutive game dating back to last August by keeping the Rangers’ offense completely off-kilter through the six innings one day after Texas had produced a 10-run explosion in Oakland.
McHugh struck out four and walked two while throwing 87 pitches before first-year Houston manager A.J. Hinch lifted him after giving up a single run in the bottom of the sixth that cut the Astros’ lead to 2-1.
“It was a good atmosphere here, a really good crowd,” McHugh said of the sellout for Texas’ first home game. “I wanted to come get off to a good start, get some zeroes up early. That was my focus, give our
team a chance to get ahead early.”
The Astros’ anemic offense during Houston’s opening series against Cleveland didn’t give McHugh much wriggle room while he was on the mound, although it did end up producing 10 hits off six Rangers pitchers after totaling just eight hits for a .096 team batting average in all three games against the Indians.
Houston shortstop Jed Lowrie got to Holland with a two-out first-inning solo home run that bounced off the top of the left-field wall. It would have been a two-run shot had second baseman Jose Altuve not gotten picked off second base after opening the game with a first-pitch single up the middle before moving up to second on George Springer’s sacrifice bunt.
“He’s a true blessing to have in our lineup,” first-year Astros manager A.J. Hinch said of Lowrie, who hit a ninth-inning homer in Thursday’s loss to break up a no-hit bid.
Holland left the game after the inning after experiencing tightness in his throwing shoulder that first flared up during his pregame tosses. He took the loss and afterward was given a diagnosis of sub-scapularis strain.
First-year Rangers manager Jeff Banister didn’t have any further update after the game.
“We didn’t feel the risk was necessary,” Banister said of the decision to remove Holland. “We looked at his velocity and the velocity was below 90 (mph). We felt like we needed to get in front of it so we took him out.”
Right-handed reliever Anthony Bass took over and allowed one run and four hits over five innings to keep Texas close.
Houston’s No. 9 hitter, Jake Marisnick, doubled over the head of third baseman Adrian Beltre to score catcher Jason Castro for a 2-0 lead.
The Rangers finally put a dent in McHugh’s day with a single run in the bottom of the sixth. Following Beltre’s one-out rope to the left-center-field gap and first baseman’s Prince Fielder’s soft single to right, left fielder Delino DeShields bounced to short to score Beltre to make it 2-1.
McHugh left the game after the inning for precautionary reasons due to a mild blister on his middle finger, an issue that caused him problems in the past.
Houston quickly retaliated in the top of the seventh to regain its two-run cushion. Again it was the nine-hole hitter Marisnick coming through with a single that scored left fielder Robbie Grossman, who had doubled off Rangers reliever Ramon Mendez in his only inning of work.
Astros reliever Pat Neshek threw a perfect seventh inning and righty reliever Chad Qualls got the Rangers in order in the eighth.
“It’s fun to come out and see those guys, Neshek and Qualls and then Gregerson, come in and pitch like that,” McHugh said. “For a starting pitcher, that’s fun to watch.”
In the top of the ninth, Houston’s Colby Rasmus, inserted as a defensive replacement in left field in the bottom of the seventh, padded the lead to 5-1 with a two-run homer to right field off Texas closer Neftali Feliz.
Astros right-hander Luke Gregerson sealed the first of three games against their in-state rivals with a scoreless ninth inning after allowing a double to Fielder.
The Rangers could be without left fielder Shin-Soo Choo for Saturday night’s game and it appears they will be without left-fielder Ryan Rua, who left the game with a sprained right ankle.
“It obviously makes us thin,” Banister said. “With Choo with back spasms, that is probably the lesser (injury) of the two outfielders.”
