THERES NO TYING IN BASEBALL… except of course in spring training. Such was the case today where the Astro’s faced the Florida Marlins in Jupiter, Florida which ended in a 10-10 tie.
Houston came out swinging in this one and built themselves a very promising lead going up 7-3 before the 3rd inning. They punished Marlin starter Chris Volstad forcing Florida skipper Fredi Gonzalez to yank him before he could get to the 3rd. Volstad went 2 innings giving up 8 hits, 7 runs (all of which were earned), and he walked 2. The lead was sparked by a strong showing from short-stop Geoff Blum going 2-for-2 with 3 RBI and a run scored. Unfortunately Blum left the game in the 2nd inning because of discomfort in his left heel. Ty Wigginton also had a very good start to the game hitting a two-bagger and a single for 2 RBI in his first couple of AB’s. He finished the game going 2-for-4 with 2 RBI and 2 runs scored. The effort didn’t stop there, both Darrin Erstad and Jose Cruz had themselves great games with Erstad going 3-for-5 with 2 runs scored, and Cruz going 2-for-5 with 2 RBI and a run scored.
The problem for the Astros was pitching… again. Starter Shawn Chacon gave Houston 5 innings of work giving up 7 hits, 6 runs (4 of which were earned), and he walked 2. Brian Moehler came in to stop the bleeding but also had a sub-par game working 2 innings allowing 2 hits and 2 runs. Young gun Wesley Wright came on in the 9th and gave up the final 2 runs to complete the tie. He pitched 1 inning giving up 4 hits, 2 runs (all of which were earned), walked 1, and received a blown save for his effort.
It would have been nice to get the win but the solid hitting (16 total) helps take away some of the sting. Unfortunately the sting that is left over is pretty painful. That of course being the awful mound effort giving by Houston pitchers. As any casual baseball fan knows, you must have pitching if you plan on getting anywhere in a season, at least to get to .500. If efforts like this keep up the Astro’s are going to have one heck of a time staying afloat this season. It is something that must be corrected immediately, if not, prepare for the worst… Any suggestions…?
