It’s hard to imagine a team that has ever played better than the Astros have been playing in the month of June, 2021.
Since May 30th, the Astros have won 19 out of 23 games. They have scored 159 runs, just a tiny fraction below seven runs per game, while allowing 69 runs, exactly three runs per game. That means they have outscored their opponents more than 2-1, with a run differential of 90. They have outscored their opponents by more than three runs per game.
For the season the Astros are currently first in the AL and have won 14 of 18 series, including their last seven in a row. And of course, with tonight’s sweep of the Orioles, the Astros have now won ten straight games.
Tonight the Astros shut out the O’s while the offense went bombs away for 13 runs on 17 hits, three doubles, and four home runs. And they were clutch too, going six for ten with runners in scoring position, while adding six walks with only five strikeouts. The first four runs were scored after there were two outs and nobody on.
The Astros scored in six of the nine innings, and every starter had at least one hit, while six starters had two hits each.
Jose Altuve, again answering the boo-birds in an opposing park, probably struck the killer blow of the night, a two run homer off losing pitcher Thomas Eshelman in the fourth, making the score 6-0. It was Altuve’s 17th homer of the season. Could he hit 40 this year?
The other homers were off knuckle-balling rookie Mickey Jannis who had a nightmarish major-league debut from Hell. He surrendered homers to Yordan Alvarez and Abraham Toro in the seventh inning, and Chas McCormick in the eighth.
Toro led the Stros with four RBI tonight, added to Carlos Correa’s two RBI on two doubles.
Meanwhile Jose Urquidy shut out a decent Orioles offense, allowing only three hits and a walk while striking out six in seven innings. Sixty-nine of his 84 pitches were for strikes.
His relief, Brandon Bielak in the eighth, and Luis Garza in the ninth, managed to preserve the shutout, but both required inning-ending double plays with runners on third to do so.
The Astros send another quiet superstar pitcher to the mound tomorrow against the Tigers in Detroit, rookie Luis Garcia, with a 2.84 season ERA.
Game time 6:10 CDT
Box Score and videos HERE.
