|
 Choo continued his torrid month with a three-hit game as the Texas
Rangers took a stranglehold on the division with a 6-2 victory over
the spiraling Houston Astros on Friday night at Minute Maid Park.
The Rangers (84-69) won their eighth consecutive game against the
Astros (80-74) and extended their lead in the division to 4 1/2
games. Houston fell to 4-13 against Texas this season and, with the
division chase all but over, it has shifted their postseason hopes
to fending off the Twins and Angels for the second wild card in the
AL.
The Angels closed to within a half-game of the Astros with an 8-4
win over the Seattle Mariners on Friday night.
Choo, who entered the series leading the AL in batting (.410),
on-base percentage (.539) and walks (19) this month, finished
3-for-5 with a two-run home run in the fourth inning. The top of the
Texas order laid waste to Astros left-hander Scott Kazmir (7-11),
with center fielder Delino DeShields, Choo and third baseman Adrian
Beltre finishing a combined 7-for-13 with four runs scored and three
RBIs - all by Choo.
"Just play," Choo said. "Enjoy play, especially team situations. We
are in first place. I played eight years in the big leagues, and I
don't have any experience with first place late in the season. So I
really enjoyed it, and then it makes me (have a) lot of energy."
Five Texas relievers kept the Astros at bay over the final five
innings, including right-hander Ross Ohlendorf (3-0), who worked
between Andrew Faulkner and Jake Diekman.
To add injury to insult, the Astros lost All-Star second baseman
Jose Altuve in the seventh inning when he collided with rookie
shortstop Carlos Correa pursuing a popup from Texas shortstop Elvis
Andrus. Altuve passed concussion protocol postgame and expressed a
desire to participate in the middle game of this three-game set on
Saturday.
Kazmir continued what has been a miserable month individually,
succumbing to the Rangers time and again with two outs in an inning.
Beltre worked a two-out walk in the first and scored when designated
hitter Prince Fielder followed with an RBI double to
left-center-field.
After his throwing error in the second allowed first baseman Mitch
Moreland to score on Andrus' bunt single, Kazmir surrendered a
two-out triple to catcher Chris Gimenez, plunked DeShields with a
pitch, and then allowed an RBI single to Choo that upped the
Rangers' lead to 3-0.
Texas knocked Kazmir out for good with another two-out rally in the
fourth, stringing together a DeShields double, Choo's 19th home run,
a Beltre double and a Fielder RBI single to extend the lead to 6-0.
"It (focus) has been a big part of the two-out success," Banister
said. "It's been a big part of the success that we've had with
runners in scoring position, but it's also been a part of the
success of that pitching staff coming out of the bullpen knowing
their mission and knowing what they need to do."
[to top of second column] |
For Kazmir, four of his eight worst starts this season (according to
the GameScore metric) unfolded in September. Friday night was his
worst of the lot: Six runs on 10 hits over 3 2/3 innings.
"I felt good. I felt really good," Kazmir said. "I left a couple
pitches out over the plate that hurt me. Overall, I just couldn't
get it done."
Houston mustered a feeble rally against Rangers right-hander Yovani
Gallardo, with first baseman Luis Valbuena following Evan Gattis'
leadoff triple in the fourth with a first-pitch, two-run homer to
right.
Although they managed to prevent Gallardo from being the pitcher of
record by chasing him with two outs in the fifth, the Astros were
just 1-for-7 against the Texas starer with runners in scoring
position. They stranded 11 baserunners total in suffering their
third consecutive home defeat.
"We are going to have to stay positive and push through this,"
Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. "Eight games can turn quickly. We
have seen it out of this team. We have seen it out of a lot of teams
where we come out of this in no time. It could start in 13 hours."
NOTES: Rangers OF Josh Hamilton participated in batting practice and
is nearing a return from left knee surgery in, at minimum, a
pinch-hitting role. Hamilton underwent arthroscopic surgery to
repair a slight meniscus tear on Sept. 11. Hamilton has been ravaged
by injuries this season, posting a .253/.295/.425 line with six home
runs and 21 RBIs in 42 games. ... The Astros announced 1B A.J. Reed
and RHP Joe Musgrove as their Minor League Player and Pitcher of the
Year. Reed hit .340/.432/.612 with 34 home runs and 127 RBIs in 135
games across two levels (High A Lancaster and Double-A Corpus
Christi) while Musgrove finished 12-1 with a 1.88 ERA in 19 games
(14 starts) across three levels (Class A Quad Cities, Lancaster and
Corpus Christi). ... Astros CF Carlos Gomez took batting practice
against team coaches in the tunnel, the first time he experienced
live batting practice since being sidelined by a left intercostal
strain on Sept. 12. Gomez could be used during the Rangers series as
a pinch runner or defensive replacement.
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
 |
