The Houston Astros are going to have to make some adjustments to their rotation when Lance McCullers comes off the disabled list.
With the way Mike Fiers is pitching lately, he is making a strong case to keep his spot.
Jose Altuve had three RBIs, while Colby Rasmus added two as the Astros jumped on Corey Kluber for five runs in the third and cruised to a 7-1 win over the Cleveland Indians on Monday night.
Photo: AFP
Fiers (3-1) allowed season lows of one run and three hits in seven innings for his third straight win.
“It’s crowded and that’s not a complaint out of me,” Hinch said of the rotation. “We’re going to need every single one of these guys in different stages of the season. It’s not the most comfortable decision ... [but] if I’ve got too many choices, they’re all good and it won’t matter which way I go.”
McCullers had a 3.22 ERA in 22 games as a rookie last season, but has spent all of this season on the disabled list with a sore throwing shoulder.
Photo: AFP
“I’m not worried about Lance,” Fiers said. “Lance is a great pitcher, and we can definitely use him. I definitely needed that, personally, and as a team, we need to get rolling here. So it was a great start, and that’s what I’m going to take out of it.”
Altuve drove in two with a double in the third and Rasmus had a two-run single later in the inning to make it 4-0.
Kluber (2-4), coming off the second shutout of his career in his last outing against the Tigers, was chased after just 2-2/3 innings. He entered with a 1.48 ERA in five career appearances against the Astros, and had allowed just five earned runs in 30-1/3 innings against them.
On Monday, he gave up five runs and five hits, while walking three in his first loss since April 17.
Kluber struck out the side in the first inning and did not allow a hit until a single by Luis Valbuena to start the third inning. Jason Castro doubled before Altuve’s double scored them both to make it 2-0.
Kluber then walked George Springer on four pitches before a single by Carlos Correa loaded the bases. The single by Rasmus to right field sent two more home to push the lead to 4-0 as Springer barely beat the throw home on the play.
They tacked on another run on a groundout by Marwin Gonzalez before Kluber retired Preston Tucker. Carlos Gomez then drew a walk to chase Kluber, who was replaced by Kyle Crockett.
It was Kluber’s shortest outing of the season and snapped a streak of three straight games where he pitched at least seven innings. Crockett finally ended the inning on the 10th batter when he struck out Valbuena.
Fiers had retired six in a row when Rajai Davis doubled to the corner of left field to start the sixth inning. He advanced to third on a groundout by Carlos Santana and the Indians cut the lead to 5-1 when he scored on a groundout by Jason Kipnis.
Valbuena doubled in the sixth and scored on a sacrifice fly by Altuve to make it 6-1.
Correa helped Fiers out early when he laid out to make a diving catch on a low line drive hit by Lonnie Chisenhall for the first out of the third inning.
Gomez, who is hitting just .210, snapped a 0 for 11 slump and drove in just his fifth run this season with a single in the eighth inning to make it 7-1.
In other MLB action, it was:
‧ Marlins 4, Brewers 1
‧ Reds 3, Pirates 2
‧ Red Sox 14, Athletics 7
‧ Diamondbacks 10, Rockies 5
‧ White Sox 8, Rangers 4
‧ Mariners 5, Rays 2
‧ Blue Jays 3, Giants 1
‧ Mets 4, Dodgers 2
‧ Orioles v Twins postponed
‧ Cubs v Padres postponed
The pressure was already on Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso before their 2-1 defeat to Manchester City on Wednesday in the UEFA Champions League raised further questions about his future. Arsenal remain perfect in this season’s competition and three points clear at the top of the standings after a 3-0 win against Club Brugge, while defending champions Paris Saint-Germain were held 0-0 at Athletic Bilbao. The clash between Madrid and City was the standout game of the round amid reports this week that Alonso had lost control of the locker room. Speculation over his position is likely to intensify after the latest
‘HIGH STANDARD’: The Thunder are on track for a Finals-Cup double after they scored 22 three-pointers in equaling the best 25-game start to a season in NBA history The Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday bagged a 16th straight victory, thrashing the Phoenix Suns 138-89 to romp into an NBA Cup semi-final clash with the San Antonio Spurs, who stunned the Los Angeles Lakers 132-119. NBA Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 28 points to lead the reigning NBA champions Thunder, who improved to 24-1 to equal the best 25-game start to a season in league history. They dominated from start to finish to book their place in the final four of the in-season tournament in Las Vegas, where they are tomorrow to take on the Spurs. The New York Knicks and
TOP OF THE TABLE: Evann Guessand put the visitors ahead early in the game and Flavius Daniliuc equalized before Youri Tielemans got the winner in the second half Aston Villa on Thursday extended their winning streak to eight games in all competitions with a 2-1 victory against Basel in the UEFA Europa League to secure at least a playoff spot. Villa were tied with Olympique Lyonnais, who beat Go Ahead Eagles 2-1, and Midtjylland, 1-0 winners over Genk, atop the standings of the second-tier European competition on 15 points with five wins from six games. They have bounced back from a poor start to the season and are third in the Premier League, including a 2-1 victory over leaders Arsenal on Saturday. At St Jakob-Park in Basel, summer signing Evann Guessand
Tony Jefferson intercepted a Jalen Hurts pass in overtime to give the Los Angeles Chargers a 22-19 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday in an NFL thriller between playoff contenders. Justin Herbert, playing a week after surgery on his broken left (non-throwing) hand, withstood a career-high seven sacks to throw for 139 yards and a touchdown for the Chargers. Cameron Dicker kicked five field goals, including the 54-yard game winner in overtime. The Chargers defenders forced Hurts to throw four interceptions and surrender a fumble for a career-worst five turnovers as the Eagles fell to 8-5 with a third
RSS