ASTROS GAMER: Houston stumbles at the end of the match against Skenes and Pittsburgh

The Houston Astros lost 5-3 to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday night at Minute Maid Park. The bullpen collapsed in that game after Houston held a late lead into the eighth inning.

HOW DID IT HAPPEN:

Former LSU Tiger Paul Skenes, who had a great rookie season, was expected to start for the Pirates. He was supposed to face Astros rookie Jake Bloss. However, Bloss was pulled in the end because he was part of a trade deal. The Astros received Yusei Kukuchi in the trade.

Skenes led off by allowing a single to Jose Altuve in the top of the inning. He did, however, get out of the first inning without allowing a run.

Houston called on reliever Tayler Scott to start. He got things off to a good start with a clean first inning. Scott went on to pitch three scoreless innings.

Skenes tied Scott 0-for-0 through the first three innings. In the fourth, Houston called on freshly called-up Kaleb Ort. Another scoreless, hitless inning followed. This continued into the top of the fifth inning, and the Pirates still hadn’t managed a hit at that point.

In the bottom of the fifth inning, Skenes got into some trouble. A single, a walk and a hit loaded the bases with no outs. A strikeout followed, but Altuve then brought home two runs on a Pittsburgh error.

The deficit was cut in half in the top of the sixth inning. The Pirates’ first hit was a monster home run by Yasmani Grandal. The score was then 2-1.

The top of the eighth inning saw the next score. Ryan Pressly came in for Houston and allowed a leadoff double. He retired the next two batters, but then gave up a walk followed by an RBI double by O’Neil Cruz. Joey Bart sent a missile into left-center field, but Jake Meyers made the play to keep the game tied.

Josh Hader came in to try to tie the game in the ninth inning. However, he allowed two runners to reach him. Then, with two outs, Michael A. Taylor hit a three-run home run to give Pittsburgh a 5-2 lead.

In the bottom of the ninth inning, the Astros loaded the bases against Pirates catcher David Bednar. Yordan Alvarez drew a walk to bring home a run. However, Yainer Diaz struck out to end the game.

LARGE NUMBER: 4

The four points conceded by Pressly and Hader were the difference. They both squandered chances in their outings, which allowed Pittsburgh to regain control.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH: Michael A. Taylor

Taylor’s ninth-inning home run was the difference in the game. He finished 2-3 in the game after replacing the injured Ji Hwan Bae.

UP NEXT: The Astros and Pirates will meet for Game 2 tomorrow night at 7:10 p.m. at Minute Maid Park. You can listen to the action on ESPN 103.7 Lafayette 104.1 Lake Charles.