The Houston Astros lost to the Kansas City Royals 5-2 on Wednesday night inside Daikin Park. With the loss, Houston is no longer in solo first place in the American League West.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
After a series-opening victory for the Astros (76-76) on Tuesday night, Cristian Javier got the ball in this contest. Javier walked the first two he faced, but got out of the jam in the first.
The Royals (67-85) countered with left-hander Daniel Lynch IV. Lynch allowed a leadoff double, but stranded that runner and kept the game scoreless.
The game stayed scoreless until the fourth inning. In that frame, John Rave hit a two-run home run for the Royals, giving them a 2-0 advantage.
The Astros offense continued to struggled as they have in this series, except for Jeremy Pena. Pena began this game 3-3, making him 6-7 in the series. The rest of the team, however, had just one hit through the first game plus six innings of this one.
While the Astros’ offense continued to struggle, the Royals eventually broke this game open. Michael Massey homered and two more runs came across later in the eighth inning, giving Kansas City a 5-0 lead.
The Houston offense put together single runs in the eighth and ninth innings, including a solo shot from Yainer Diaz. However, it was too little and too late. Kansas City held on for the 5-2 win.
BIG NUMBER: 0
The Astros’ loss coupled with a Rangers’ win means that the division lead has been erased. Houston still leads virtually due to the head-to-head tiebreaker over Texas, but they will need to win some games down the stretch in order to make the postseason.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Daniel Lynch IV
The Royals’ pitching staff has continued to stifle Houston. Lynch went five scoreless innings in this one, keeping his team in front and getting help from the bullpen in the victory for KC.
UP NEXT: The Astros and Royals will conclude their three-game series tomorrow night at 6:15 PM. The game can be heard on Newstalk 98.5 FM.