Houston Astros defeat Washington Nationals 3-2 – MLB Update
The Houston Astros maintained their winning streak on Wednesday, July 20 as they beat the Washington Nationals 3-2 at Minute Maid Park.
The game did not come to the Astros easily as the team struggled up until the 11th inning to not only win the game but also the series.
"It's good to see these guys rewarded for some good play," Houston manager Brad Mills said. "To have these back-to-back wins and win a series is big."
While the offence did their share, the defence had found a strong source in Brett Myers. In the seven innings that Myers pitched, he allowed only eight hits and two runs to keep Houston in the game and in the series.
"We need some momentum going right now," he said. "Obviously we're not playing our best baseball, but that series right there we played pretty well. It was close games. We slugged with them yesterday and we pitched with them today and ultimately we were
able to come out winning."
Myers started a good start with a shut-out first inning, allowing no hit and run to the Nationals who have won more games than the Astros in the season and stand in a better position in the rankings.
With his perfectly pitched inning coming to an end, Myers left the rest of the things to the offence. The hitters did not disappoint him. It was Carlos Lee who hit Liven Hernandez to score the first run for the Houston Astros.
The lead was better-timed and provided a fertile ground to other hitters to score. The Astros’ offence knew how to take their chances. Humberto Quintero doubled to left to take the team’s score to 2-0 by the end of the second inning.
In the 21 games that he has pitched so far in the season, Myers has maintained a 4.74 ERA with 1.37 WHIP, having allowed 75 runs and 140 hits. The starter has nine years experience to his impressive credentials.
Meyers pitched right into the fifth inning, not allowing the Nationals’ offence to play confidently against him. Jayson Werth took a chance and homered to level the score in the sixth inning 2-2.
The Astros did not give up. Neither did the Nationals, as both teams entered into an all-out effort to prevail. As the game proceeded, the tying score did not move up right into the eleventh inning.
Jason Michaels, however, came with a magical hit, when the score was 2-2 in the 11th inning, to score the tie-breaking and game-winning run to give the Astros 2-1 victory in the three-game series.
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