2005 SEASON
APRIL 29-MAY 1: CHICAGO @ HOUSTON
FRIDAY, APRIL 29, 2005 (Game 21) – Chicago @ Houston
Chicago 3, Astros 2
It was billed as the pitchers’ duel of the decade: Roger Clemens vs. Greg Maddux. The first time that two 300-game winners have pitched against each other since the mid-80’s. And it certainly was a duel, but the wrong guy won. Roger Clemens must be getting pretty sick of hearing how he has been outpitched by nearly every one of his opponents, when he’s got the best ERA in the National League (1.03 – up after this game from 0.32!).
So…Another painful one-run loss after a good start by Roger Clemens. All 5 of Clemens starts this season have resulted in 1 run games, only one of which the Astros have won. This time at least, they didn’t blow another Clemens shutout, like the last three. Roger gave up the 3 runs himself, in what is least impressive start of the season: 3 ERs on 7 hits, 2 BBs, and 4 Ks. But considering what I’m comparing it to: The third game of the season, his only win, when the Astros won 3-2 – and two of the three Astros runs were Clemens RBIs. Or the three 0-0 games that went into extra innings – each of which the Astros ultimately lost 1-0, long after it was Clemens’ to win or lose.
This game was on Shabbat, at the beginning of a two-day end-of-Pesach holiday, so of course I missed it. Given that I had three games to catch up on by Sunday night, and the Astros won the other two, I decided to skip the archived game for this one. So my notes are based on all the writeups, pitch-by-pitch record, box scores, etc. That doesn’t account for brilliant diving catches in the outfield (which show up simply as Flied Out). But I couldn’t bear to watch the Good Guys let Clemens down again.
The Astros wore the home stripes. They should look like prisoners after this depressing performance.
High points:
- The Astros finally scored a run – Mike Lamb (playing left field, in place of Luke Skywalker) hit an RBI double in the 1st inning. That was the Astros first run in 21 innings! For a moment in time, at least, Clemens might have fantasized that he’d get some real run support for a change. (He must have still been in shock in the second, when he promptly gave up the lead.)
- Taveras led off again, reaching on an infield single in his first at bat. His amazing speed gets him to first base so quickly. And once on first, he’s on second – he got another steal (#7) – then scored on Lamb’s double.
- Bagwell got his 3rd home run. He’s now at 449 – just short of tying his childhood hero, Carl Yastrzemski.
- One Astros player actually got more than one hit in the game: That would be…Clemens! Mr. Do It Yourself. He got two hits (neither of them for RBIs, alas) – bumping his batting average to .300!
- Springer and Wheeler combined for 2 relief innings without giving up a run.
Disappointments:
- Well, they lost again, for the sixth straight game. Isn’t that enough?
Notes on the Other Good Guys:
- Nats beat the Fucking Mets, 5-1. HAHAHA!
Notes on the Other Bad Guys:
- Don’t the Cards ever lose? They beat Atlanta, 6-5.
- In other close NL Central games, the Pirates got their punishment for what they did to Houston, losing to SF, 3-2. And Milwaukee beat the Reds, 4-3.
Final123456789RHEChi. Cubs « 020000100310 0Houston 101000000270W: G. Maddux (1-1) L: R. Clemens (1-1) S: L. Hawkins (4)==============================================================================
SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 2005 (Game 22) – Chicago @ Houston
Houston 7, Chicago 5
After 6 losses in a row, I didn’t exactly bounce out of bed at 5 AM Sunday morning to go check the sports page, to see what happened to the Astros Saturday night. I almost dreaded looking, but hooray – the Good Guys scored a lot, Bagwell went 3 for 4, and Backe got a win. A nice 56th birthday present for Phil Garner, who hasn’t had enough fun in the past couple of weeks.
I watched the archived game on Sunday night, after the holiday ended, just as soon as I finished packing up the Pesach dishes.
The Astros wore the home white jerseys.
High points:
- Double-digit hits (well, 10) and real-live runs, starting with 3 in the 1st inning. The Cubs caught up with 3 runs in the 4th, but the Astros came right back with a run in the bottom of the inning, and stayed ahead for the rest of the game. (So why can’t they do this when Clemens is pitching???)
- Backe got his second win, pitching a full 7 innings. Not exactly a perfect game: He gave up 4 ER on 6 hits, with 2 BBs and 8 Ks. Had a bad inning in the 4th, giving back the 3 runs that the Astros scored for him in the 1st, but otherwise looked very solid. Pitched more offspeed pitches as the game progressed. Had a couple of sac bunts too, but unfortunately no hits – at 0 for 2, his batting average is now down to .375.
- Bagwell was 3 for 4 at the plate, with the first RBI of the game, a walk, and scoring 2 runs. Broke a couple of bats in the process of continuing his hitting streak, and raised his average to .263.
- Willie T is really something – I am not missing Beltran with Taveras out in center field. Another great throw from center to nail a runner coming into home in the 2nd – his throw was perfect. All Ausmus had to do was catch it. He also had an RBI double in the 4th. With Everett out with the flu, Taveras is leading off. The kid can hit, he can run, he can field, and he can throw. Okay, Beltran can hit more HRs, but 4 out of 5 isn’t bad.
- Lamb played in left field. His batting average doesn’t look like much, but the great majority of his hits are for extra bases. This game: an RBI triple in the first inning (scored Bagwell), and a double in the 7th, raising his BA from .212 to .243. And he made a spectacular backhanded running catch in the 4th, robbing Hollandsworth of an extra base hit in an inning when the Cubs were beating up on Backe.
- In other good news… Berkman’s playing rehab in Round Rock. Hopefully he’ll be back in a week or so. Expect to see him in the outfield, with Lane and Willie T. Will Garner send Scott down to play Triple A?
Disappointments:
- Qualls took over for Backe in the 8th and promptly let a couple of runs score. Luckily the Astros had beefed up their lead in the 7th and it didn’t cost them the game. It was the first ER given up by an Astros reliever in a week – since Qualls gave up a run in the middle game of the St. Louis series on the 23rd. He did manage to pitch a clean 9th inning.
- Would have expected to see Lidge in the 9th – but he’s out with pneumonia. About a fifth of the team -- including Everett, Vizcaino, Ensberg, and Garner – have been ill with viral respiratory infections. (Viz played this game after spending 24 hours in the hospital.)
- Bidge didn’t have a good night – he was 0 for 5, extending his dry streak to 15 at bats. And he had a fielding error in the 3rd – an innocent-looking ground ball just hopped right off his glove.
- The Astros finished April with a record of 9 and 13 (.409), 6 games behind the Cards in the NL Central. Eight of the 9 wins were in Houston – with 10 losses (in 11 games) on the road. What’s wrong with this picture?
Notes on the Other Good Guys:
Washington beat the Fucking Mets, 3-5. Okha pitched, unexpectedly, when Zach Day got sick with an inner ear infection. The field was a mess, and the game was called in the middle of the 8th due to rain. Both teams protested the game and Frank Robinson was thrown out just before the game was called.
Notes on the Other Bad Guys:
- The Cards lost to Atlanta, 3-2 – woo hoo. Milwaukee beat Cincinnati, 6-5. And San Francisco beat Pittsburgh, 7-6. I have pecking order for cheering for/against NL Central teams when they are playing each other: Always cheer for Pittsburgh and Milwaukee if they are playing against the Cards, Cubs, or Reds. Cheer for the Reds against the Cards and Cubs. Cheer for the Cubs against the Cards. All based on an assumption that the Cards are the biggest threat, and that the Pirates and Brewers and Reds ultimately will drift to the bottom. (And that Houston will drift to the top…!)
Final123456789RHEChi. Cubs 000300020580Houston « 30010030x7 101W: B. Backe (2-1) L: C. Bartosh (0-1) ==============================================================================
SUNDAY, MAY 1, 2005 (Game 23) – Chicago @ Houston
Houston 9, Chicago 3
Hey, that’s more like it, guys! It was advertised as yet another pitchers duel: Roy Oswalt vs. Mark Prior. Instead, it was an Astros blowout, thanks to a seven-run 5th inning, starring Mike Lamb (grand slam) and Adam Everett (3 run shot). The Astros batted around in the inning, and both homers were hit with 2 out. All in all, a bad surprise for Mark Prior, and a nice show of clutch hitting for the Good Guys.
Match that up with a “good enough” outing from Oswalt, for his 4th win. He gave up 3 runs on 10 scattered hits, with 2 BBs and only 1 K. Not his usual sharp pitching – and it turned out that the reason was a sprained foot. He had to leave the game after 5 innings. But it’s day-to-day, and Garner doesn’t expect him to miss his next start.
Of course, I missed this game, since it was the last day of Pesach. But that’s what the archives are for, right? Bummer though: It was another Chicago telecast, so the announcers were less than enthusiastic about the grand slam. I really love to hear the local Astros announcers get all excited when the Good Guys have some fun.
The Astros wore the home Sunday reds.
High points:
- Lamb was 2 for 5, continuing his extraordinary run of extra-base hits with his first HR of the year – and the first grand slam of his career. What was Prior thinking? He threw a fast ball right down the middle on an 0-2 count, and so long sucker -- Lamb hit it over the right field wall. Lamb’s other hit was an RBI single, in the next inning, scoring Biggio, who had tripled. Of Lamb’s 11 hits this season, 8 are for extra bases – 4 doubles, 3 triples, and the HR.
- Biggio broke his 15 at-bat hitting drought with two hits, a triple and a single, scoring twice.
- Willie T is still leading off – Garner doesn’t like to mess with success, and hey – they won yesterday! He played perfect lead-off ball in the first: Singled to get on base, and promptly stole second (#8). And he was part of the big bang in the 5th, with another single, scoring on the grand slam. He also had another amazing day in the field – the third consecutive game in which he threw out a runner at home plate. Taveras’ comment on this: "If they're going to keep running, I'm going to keep throwing them out. I'm not going to let people take advantage of me."
- Bagwell continues his hitting streak, hitting 1 for 3, with 2 BBs. Unfortunately for him, one of his at-bats was with the bases loaded and one out in the 5th – an opportunity for heroics. But he struck out swinging on 3 pitches. He must have hated that. But he did leave the situation open for Lamb, who managed to make the very best of it.
- Good relief pitching continues. Springer, Wheeler, Harville, and Franco combined for 4 innings without giving up a run. In fact, only 2 hits and 1 BB – all on Harville’s nickel.
Disappointments:
- Everett had two fielding errors (the 4th time he’s done this in his career). But he made up for it at the plate.
Notes on the Other Good Guys:
- Washington lost to the Fucking Mets, 6-3.
Notes on the Other Bad Guys:
- The Cards lost to Atlanta again, 2-1! Thank you, Braves! Milwaukee beat Cincinnati again – creamed them, actually 13-3. And San Francisco beat Pittsburgh again, 8-3.
Final123456789RHEChi. Cubs 0021000003121Houston « 10007100x9112W: R. Oswalt (4-2) L: M. Prior (3-1) 
