Astros Blow Golden Opportunity to Take Control of AL West

It seemed like the perfect opportunity was presenting itself to the Houston Astros on a late Wednesday night.

The Astros had regained first place in the American League West division with a 7-0 win over the Seattle Mariners in the first game of the series on Tuesday. The Texas Rangers lost their second straight game to the New York Mets earlier on Wednesday evening.

This was the chance for the Astros to win the series against the Mariners and take a one game lead in the tight division race. Given that Houston also has the head-to-head over Texas, a one-game lead with the tiebreaker would be a strong position to have in order to make the postseason.

It was not meant to be as the Astros suffered a crushing 5-4 loss in the 10th inning to the Mariners in a game that saw them agonizingly close to pulling out the win of the season. Houston now remains in first in the AL West thanks to the tiebreaker at 78-80.

What Went Wrong

Houston Astros catcher Yainer Diaz (21) hits an RBI-triple against the Seattle Mariners during the tenth inning at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Astros took an early 4-0 lead after the top of the third inning thanks to a Jose Altuve RBI single, Isaac Paredes sacrifice fly and a two-run homer from Yainer Diaz. That was short-lived as the Mariners responded with three runs in the bottom half of the inning and knocked rookie starter Ethan Pecko out of the game.

Seattle added another run in the fifth, and both teams didn't have an answer on offense until extra innings. Houston took the lead again in the 10th after Diaz delivered with another clutch RBI, this time his first triple of the year.

Closer Josh Hader came back out for his second inning of work in the 10th as Houston was three outs away. Hader had already thrown 19 pitches in the ninth even when he began his outing against the 7-9 hitters.

This was the first time that Hader pitched more than one inning since Aug. 10 and it ultimately got out of control. It was clear that he was tiring out as the command just kept getting worse. Hader walked three batters in the 10th, including the game-tying run before Josh Naylor hit a walk-off single on the first pitch he saw.

Hader ended up throwing 44 pitches, with just 25 for strikes. This was the most pitches he's thrown in an outing since Aug. 9, 2019. All that effort just got wasted. In total, he walked four and gave up two hits, along with one earned run in 1.1 innings.

Manager Joe Espada decided to leave Hader in there for the 10th when it was obvious he wasn't at his best. Ultimately, Espada didn't have much of a choice as there were no other reliable options available to come in and pitch. Hader was likely the best bet as he was coming off six days of rest. He did not deliver for the first time all year at the worst time possible.

“The stuff was really good. They fouled some tough pitches off, they really made him work,” Espada said according to Brian McTaggart of MLB.com.. “The slider was there, the sinker was good, up to 96 [mph], but they just put some really good at-bats against him and made him work."

Nobody was warming in the bullpen at all, which was surprising. The only other real option Espada might have had was rookie Miguel Ullola, who pitched two innings on Tuesday. Hader was given $95 million for nights like these, but it didn't work out.

"I think I’ve got to be in the zone more. Obviously in the 10th, you don’t want to be in the zone to give up a hit, but you’re not doing yourself good if they’re not swinging at the ones out of the zone," Hader said according to McTaggart.

Now, the issue is that Hader won't be available on Thursday and possibly even Friday after this extended outing. No closer for the next two must win games isn't ideal.

This decision was put under the spotlight after the devastating loss. Additionally, Espada took out Cam Smith in the eighth and pinch hit Lamonte Wade Jr. even though Smith has better numbers across the board against righties.

While Wade has been very slightly more successful in the last week, Smith is a power player and just recently hit a double on Tuesday. The outfield continues to be a huge issue, as the Astros were 0/11 from them in this game.

With all the effort of the bullpen to get in a winning position with two scoreless from AJ Blubaugh and two innings of one-run ball from rookie debutant Josh Hendrickson, losing a game like this is a big letdown.

Houston must quickly regroup in order to stay in control of its destiny in a four-game series on the road against the Athletics.

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