The Astros kicked off their series Monday night against the White Sox with a win, but Tuesday night was a different story.
The Houston Astros dropped the second game of their four-game series against the Chicago White Sox Tuesday night.
Ronel Blanco took the mound for the first time since being sidelined Aug. 15, recalled from Triple-A Sugar Land for the spot start. Blanco battled through traffic but was able to give the Astros four scoreless innings, stranding three runners in scoring position along the way. A solid return for the right-hander.
The White Sox didn't get on the board until the 5th, with Kai-Wei Teng stepping on the hill in relief. Teng hit Sam Antonacci with a pitch and struck out Murakami, but then walked Vargas before Andrew Benintendi drove in the first run of the game with a single. Colson Montgomery followed with a two-run double to make it 3-0.
Sean Burke took the mound for the White Sox. He battled through some early trouble but clearly found his footing. Burke didn't make things easy for the Astros once he settled in. He issued a few walks, but the Astros couldn't take advantage of it. Burke exited the game with a 3-0 lead intact.
Tatsuya Imai came in during the 7th and gave up a two-run double to Randal Grichuk, extending the White Sox lead to 5-0.
Here's a look at the pitching stats, and who took the loss for Houston:
Ronel Blanco: 4.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 3 K
Kai-Wei Teng: 2.0 IP, 3 ER, 2 H, 1 BB, 1 K (took the loss)
As for the rest of the game, it was pretty routine baseball. The White Sox were simply playing like they look on paper, better than the Astros.
Between Cam Smith and Isaac Paredes, there was a small blip of excitement for Astros fans. Cam Smith made a great catch, robbing the White Sox of a home run and putting an end to a rough inning.
Isaac Paredes kept the excitement going for the Astros, hitting a solo home run off Jordan Hicks in the eighth, his 18th of the season, and putting the Astros on the board. However, it wasn't enough to get the Astros back in the game.
It was a dominant performance for the White Sox. They evened out the series, and now the Astros need a strong comeback to regain control of the series.
