Houston Astros Ace Part of MLB History in Hard Luck Loss at Hands of Jacob deGrom

Hunter Brown and the Houston Astros did not disappoint against the Texas Rangers and Jacob deGrom.

May 15, 2025; Arlington, Texas, USA; Houston Astros pitcher Hunter Brown (58) throws to the plate during the first inning against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field. / Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images

The Houston Astros knew how important their upcoming series with the Texas Rangers was going to be.

As a result, they adjusted their starting pitching rotation, keeping the six-man rotation they are hoping to use through a 17-day stretch without an off day.

That resulted in their ace, Hunter Brown, matching up against Jacob deGrom in Game 1 of the Lone Star Series during MLB’s Rivalry Weekend.

Pitching matchups like that used to be front-page news not too long ago, two stars facing off against each other. They lived up to the hype, each performing at an incredibly high level in a good old-fashioned pitcher’s duel.

Brown was the hard-luck loser in a 1-0 Astros loss. The only run scored in the game came courtesy of Rangers first baseman Jake Burger, who hit a solo home run in the bottom of the sixth inning.

It was the first complete game in the career of the Houston hurler, who pitched all eight innings, allowing only three hits and the one earned run to go along with nine strikeouts.

That makes five starts in a row Brown has struck out at least nine batters.

deGrom matched that incredible performance with eight shutout innings of his own, striking out seven while allowing only five hits and one walk.

What History Did Hunter Brown and Jacob deGrom Make?

Their dominance on the mound led to some impressive history being made.

As shared by OptaSTATS on X, since pitches were tracked for the first time in 1988, the matchup between the Astros and Texas is the first that featured both starting pitchers throwing 8+ innings, allowing no more than one run, striking out 7+ batters and throwing fewer than 100 pitches.

Since pitches were first tracked in 1988, tonight's @astros - @Rangers game is the only MLB game where both starters:

pitched 8.0+ innings
allowed no more than 1 run
struck out 7+ batters
threw fewer than 100 pitches pic.twitter.com/AoDzeWWIwu

— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) May 16, 2025

The fans were treated to an incredible display of pitching, which has become a rare sight with so much of the focus shifting to offense and scoring runs.

Thursday night was the first loss of the season for Brown since his 2025 debut on March 28 against the New York Mets, who is showing no signs of slowing down.

He is now 6-2 with a 1.43 ERA and American League-best 2.5 bWAR. His 1.93 FIP and 5.2 H/9 are both the best in baseball along with his six victories. His 0.3 HR/9 is the best in the AL along with his 56.2 innings pitched.

That performance has him in the early mix as a Cy Young Award candidate and putting himself in a position for a massive payday.

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