Absurd Coincidence in Back-to-Back Games Explains Astros’ Pitching Woes

The Houston Astros have had something in back-to-back games that underscores just how buried the pitching staff is right now.

Houston Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. | Erik Williams-Imagn Images

The Houston Astros can’t catch a break. These days it’s about pitching. But at least this time it wasn’t an injury. But it was absurd.

Lance McCullers Jr. started Saturday’s game for the Astros, which turned into a loss to the St. Louis Cardinals, which was their 12th loss in the last 15 games. He followed Peter Lambert, who made his Astros debut on Friday after he was called up earlier in the week to take the spot of Tatsuya Imai in the rotation after he was moved to the injured list.

Lambert lost too. Both did something that one is unlikely to see in back-to-back games. Each hit the same two batters in back-to-back at-bats in two straight games. It one way, it explains where the Astros are right now when it comes to pitching — when it rains, it pours.

Crazy Astros Pitching Coincidences

Houston Astros starting pitcher Peter Lambert. | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

McCullers hit the first two batters he faced in Saturday’s game, the Cardinals’ JJ Wetherholt and Ivan Herrera. Both runners scored on a single by Nolan Gorman that gave St. Louis a 2-0 lead. That set off a game in which McCullers was able to get through five innings, but allowed four hits, four earned runs and three walks. He also struck out four. He gave up a home run later in the game that pushed St. Louis’ lead to 4-1.

Lambert hit his back-to-back batters in the third inning of Friday’s game and, incredibly, he hit the same two batters in the same order, Wetherholt and Herrera to lead off the inning. Lambert then walked Alec Burleson to load the bases. Masyn Wynn drove in Wetherholt and Herrera to push St. Louis’ lead to 3-0.

Lambert also went five innings in his Houston debut, as he gave up seven hits, four earned runs and one walk. But he also struck out eight batters in a 9-4 loss.

The Astros are looking for pitching reinforcements everywhere they can because it may be a bit for at least two of their injured starting pitchers. Both Hunter Brown and Christian Javier are working back from Grade 2 shoulder strains, an injury that will likely require more than a month to recover from before starting a build-up.

Last offseason’s top free-agent acquisition, Imai, is on the 15-day injured list with right arm fatigue. Imaging showed there's nothing wrong with his arm, but he told reporters earlier this week that he's had trouble adjusting to the American schedule. But he's already throwing side sessions and could return when he's eligible.

None of that helps Houston right now. None of that explains what McCullers and Lambert did on back-to-back nights.