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Manager Brad Mills removes Fernando Rodriguez, who suffered his seventh loss after allowing four runs in 2⁄3 of an inning in the sixth. Photo: TIM SHARP / FR62992 AP
by Zachary Levine
ARLINGTON - Until we meet again. And again and again and again.
Two series against the Rangers have proved to be a nightmare for the Astros. The good news is there are no more this season; the bad news is this one-sided rivalry is about to go intradivisional, with its games tripling in frequency.
But two series were plenty this year for the Astros, who were swept in ugly fashion with Texas' 9-3 victory Sunday and who were defeated five games to one in the Battle for the Silver Boot. The footwear remains with Texas for a sixth straight year, and the interleague phase of this matchup concludes with Texas holding a 42-30 edge.
No matter what the Astros did well for the early parts of games here, it vanished once the middle innings rolled around, and Sunday's meltdown was particularly graphic. Dallas Keuchel's fine major league debut was washed away in a sea of walks, a strange lapse by the defense and 11 strikeouts from a reeling offense that has averagd 2.8 runs in its last six games, including a perfect game.
"It's nice to be going home right now," catcher Jason Castro said, summing up the 3-6 road trip perfectly.
And out of Arlington, where competitive games turned into blowouts and losses with two five-run innings and, most recently, a seven-run inning.
Keuchel, starting in place of the injured Bud Norris, allowed three hits and four walks but no runs over his first five innings, working out of bases-loaded jams in the third and fourth.
But after a 1-2-3 fifth, the sixth proved to be even more of a nightmare than the undoings of Lucas Harrell and Jordan Lyles the days before.
Keuchel gave up a leadoff single to Nelson Cruz, and Brad Mills came out to get his young lefty at 91 pitches. Enter Fernando Rodriguez, who walked two but was one strike from getting out of it when Ian Kinsler hit a bases-loaded triple to the left-center gap.
Disastrous sixth
A walk to Elvis Andrus, and that was it for Rodriguez, who allowed his first inherited runner to score at an inopportune time. In all, the bullpen allowed eight runs in three innings as the decline from an extremely successful April and May continues.
"When things get away from us like they have on this road trip with Bud getting hurt and a couple other things, three innings or four innings, those innings start piling up for your bullpen," said Mills, who said he pulled Keuchel because of his lack of experience pitching deep into games this year and stressful innings with the bases loaded.
Defensive gaffe
But things would only get worse when David Carpenter entered. Michael Young singled to right, and Andrus scored all the way from first when he just kept running and Brian Bogusevic threw to second base with no urgency.
"It didn't look good, and it can't happen," Mills said in a rare moment of feistiness after three hours and 23 minutes of frustration.
A home run by Adrian Beltre was the capper to a seven-run inning, leaving the Astros with nothing to salvage from this one beyond an encouraging debut for Keuchel.
"I wasn't really nervous; I think I was just ready for it," Keuchel said. "After that first strike call to Kinsler (leading off the game), I settled down right then. I had to battle through some stuff, but overall, I think it went pretty well."
So he can take a pleasant memory of the Metroplex to the American League next year. As for the Astros, well, they will not look forward to returning here again. And again. And again …
zachary.levine@chron.com twitter.com/zacharylevine
Two series against the Rangers have proved to be a nightmare for the Astros. The good news is there are no more this season; the bad news is this one-sided rivalry is about to go intradivisional, with its games tripling in frequency.
But two series were plenty this year for the Astros, who were swept in ugly fashion with Texas' 9-3 victory Sunday and who were defeated five games to one in the Battle for the Silver Boot. The footwear remains with Texas for a sixth straight year, and the interleague phase of this matchup concludes with Texas holding a 42-30 edge.
No matter what the Astros did well for the early parts of games here, it vanished once the middle innings rolled around, and Sunday's meltdown was particularly graphic. Dallas Keuchel's fine major league debut was washed away in a sea of walks, a strange lapse by the defense and 11 strikeouts from a reeling offense that has averagd 2.8 runs in its last six games, including a perfect game.
"It's nice to be going home right now," catcher Jason Castro said, summing up the 3-6 road trip perfectly.
And out of Arlington, where competitive games turned into blowouts and losses with two five-run innings and, most recently, a seven-run inning.
Keuchel, starting in place of the injured Bud Norris, allowed three hits and four walks but no runs over his first five innings, working out of bases-loaded jams in the third and fourth.
But after a 1-2-3 fifth, the sixth proved to be even more of a nightmare than the undoings of Lucas Harrell and Jordan Lyles the days before.
Keuchel gave up a leadoff single to Nelson Cruz, and Brad Mills came out to get his young lefty at 91 pitches. Enter Fernando Rodriguez, who walked two but was one strike from getting out of it when Ian Kinsler hit a bases-loaded triple to the left-center gap.
Disastrous sixth
A walk to Elvis Andrus, and that was it for Rodriguez, who allowed his first inherited runner to score at an inopportune time. In all, the bullpen allowed eight runs in three innings as the decline from an extremely successful April and May continues.
"When things get away from us like they have on this road trip with Bud getting hurt and a couple other things, three innings or four innings, those innings start piling up for your bullpen," said Mills, who said he pulled Keuchel because of his lack of experience pitching deep into games this year and stressful innings with the bases loaded.
Defensive gaffe
But things would only get worse when David Carpenter entered. Michael Young singled to right, and Andrus scored all the way from first when he just kept running and Brian Bogusevic threw to second base with no urgency.
"It didn't look good, and it can't happen," Mills said in a rare moment of feistiness after three hours and 23 minutes of frustration.
A home run by Adrian Beltre was the capper to a seven-run inning, leaving the Astros with nothing to salvage from this one beyond an encouraging debut for Keuchel.
"I wasn't really nervous; I think I was just ready for it," Keuchel said. "After that first strike call to Kinsler (leading off the game), I settled down right then. I had to battle through some stuff, but overall, I think it went pretty well."
So he can take a pleasant memory of the Metroplex to the American League next year. As for the Astros, well, they will not look forward to returning here again. And again. And again …
zachary.levine@chron.com twitter.com/zacharylevine
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