Roy O had his game face on tonight and gave up only three singles in seven innings as the Stros broke their five game losing streak in beating the Cubbies, 5-0. Lance Berkman cranked his sixth dinger in eight games, a two run shot off of Astro-killer Carlos Zambrano to the Conoco Porch in the left center of the Juice Box.
Andy Pettitte takes the hill on Wednesday evening as the Stros go for the two game sweep against the Cubs’ Greg Maddux. After an off day on Thursday, the Rocket opens the weekend series with the Cards at the Juice Box.

The Stros limp home tonight after losing their fifth straight game and fourth straight to the Reds, 7-5. Berkman is the only player hitting consistently well, and no one is pitching lights out at this point. Not a good combination, and the schedule is not favorable. The Stros begin a two week stretch of playing the Cubs and the Cards with Roy O taking the hill against the Cubs on Tuesday night in the Juice Box.

The listless Stros made the forgetable Corey Lidle look like Tom Seaver today as the Reds mowed down the Stros for third straight day, 7-0. The Stros have now lost four straight and their boat is clearly taking on some serious H2O.
Tim Redding will try to salvage a game in Cincy for the Stros in Monday night’s game. Roy O opens the Cub series on Tuesday night at the Juice Box.

Sean Casey and Ken Griffey hit run scoring doubles off of normally reliable Brad Lidge in the bottom of the eighth on Saturday night in Cincy as the hard-hitting Reds sent the Stros to their third straight defeat, 8-7. The win moves the Reds into a first place tie with the Stros and the Cubs in the NL Central. All three clubs have a 24-18 record.
The Rocket struggled in this start, giving up six runs and nine hits in six innings, including four walks. Despite Clemens’ strong start this season, his elevated walks total is a clear sign that his performance level is trending downward.
The Stros’ stroked 15 hits and were led by red-hot Lance Berkman, who hit his fourth dinger in the last five games and had two doubles. Of course, manager Jimy Williams continues to bat Berkman fifth in the order when he is a far superior hitter to any other Astro and thus, should be batting in the postion in the order that would maximize his plate appearances.
In fact, Williams’ dubious decision-making is becoming a big problem for the Stros. Despite near deification among local reporters as being a real “baseball guy” (whatever that means), Williams in reality is a mediocre manager, as has been explained earlier here and here. Late in this game, Williams again allowed his irrational prejudice in favor of veteran players to hurt the Stros’ chances of winning.
In the top of the ninth, consecutive hits by Kent, Berkman and Ensberg scored a run to make it 8-7 with no outs. After Berkman was cut down on a fielder’s choice, the Stros still had runners on first and second with one out. Inexplicably, with the game on the line, Williams trotted two of the worst hitters in Major League Baseball — Brad Ausmus and Jose Vizcaino — to the plate. The Stros’ bench is not strong this season, but Williams’ refusal to use the far superior hitter second year man Jason Lane in that situation is yet another example of Williams’ questionable use of veteran players over better, but younger, alternatives.
As noted earlier, Williams non-sensical platooning of the emerging star Ensberg last season with the far inferior Geoff Blum may have been the difference in the close NL Central race that the Stros ended up losing to the Cubs by a game. This season’s NL Central race will likely by just as close, and the Stros’ small margin of error cannot afford Williams’ continued poor decision-making.
Wade Miller tries to right the Stros’ ship the Sunday afternoon game against the Reds’ Corey Lidle. After closing out the Reds series tomorrow behind Tim Redding, the Stros come home for key home and home series with the Cubs and Cards.

The Reds jumped on Stros relievers Backe and Miceli for five runs in the sixth to take control and then cruised to a 7-4 win on Friday night at Great American Ballpark.
Andy Pettitte muddled through five innings for the Stros, giving up two runs on four hits, but walking four, which jumped his pitch count. Backe and Miceli stunk up the joint in the sixth, and Jeff Kent did not look slick, either, making a poor play on the first hit of the inning and failing to make the turn on a double play ball that would have short circuited the big inning. Meanwhile, the Reds’ relievers shut the Stros down after the Stros took a 4-2 lead in the top of the sixth on a Bags dinger and an Ensberg pinch hit (yes, manager Jimy did not start the hottest hitter on the team — simply incredible).
The Rocket takes the hill on Saturday as the Stros try to get back on track after two straight losses. The Stros are 24-17 on the season and still a game in front of the Cubs for first in the NL Central, but now also just a game in front of the surging Reds.

Josh Beckett pitched seven and two thirds strong innings and the Marlins roughed up Roy O for eleven hits over six innings as the Fish downed the Stros in the final game of their series at Pro Player Stadium, 6-2.
Beckett clearly had his game face on for his hometown team as he gave up only five hits and two runs, one of which was Lance Berkman‘s third yak of the series. The Stros made it interesting by loading the bases with two out in the eighth, but the marginally competent home plate umpire Lazaro Diaz rang Berkman up on an absurdly outside pitch from Benitez and the Stros were toast.
The Stros to to Cincinnati for a weekend series with the Reds before returning to the Juice Box next Tuesday for a two week stretch of games against the Cubs and the Cards. The NL Central race is about to heat up.

For the second straight night, the Stros hammered a pitcher who had dominated them a week earlier and improved their road record to 12-4 as they beat the Marlins at Pro Player Stadium, 10-2.
Tim Redding continued his improved pitching of late by stifling the Fish on three hits and two runs over six and two thirds innings. The Stros got to the Marlins’ Carl Pavano for nine hits and five runs over seven innings, and Lance Berkman again led the Stros’ hitting attack with his seventh dinger and a couple of RBI’s. Also, Morgan Ensberg‘s two hit and three RBI performance continued to make it difficult for manager Jimy Williams to rationalize platooning him, as is his instinct.
The Stros go for the series sweep in the Thursday night by sending Roy O to the hill, but it won’t be easy. Spring’s Josh Beckett will likely be at his best as he attempts to beat his hometown team. Tune in for at least a part of this one and enjoy watching two of the best young pitchers in Major League Baseball. The Stros go to Cincy for a series with the Reds over the weekend, and then return to the Juice Box next Tuesday for consecutive series against the Cubs and the Cards.

Baseball is a bewildering game.
Last Wednesday night at the hitter friendly Juice Box, Dontrelle Willis threw 91 pitches in hurling a complete game 5-2 victory for the Marlins over the Stros. The Stros’ Wade Miller left that game in the sixth inning with a sore neck.
On Tuesday night, Willis threw 96 pitches in four innings and Miller pitched seven effective innings as the Stros’ pummelled the Fish, 9-2 at pitcher friendly Pro Player Stadium. Go figure.
Lance Berkman led the Stros’ hitting attack as he whacked four hits — including a double and a solo yak — and had 2 RBI’s and 2 runs. Inexplicably, Stros’ manager Jimy Williams continues to bat Berkman in either the fifth or sixth hole even though every player hitting in front of him in the Astros’ lineup is an inferior hitter. Oh, well. Even outmaker supreme Brad Ausmus had a two run crank and 3 RBI’s. The big lead allowed the Stros to give seldom used relievers Ricky Stone and Brandon Duckworth some work, and they worked the last three innings without incident.
Things are likely to pick up for the Fish in the Wednesday game as Tim Redding pitches for the Stros against the Marlins’ Carl Pavano, who dominated the Stros’ in a game last week. Roy O and the Marlins’ Josh Beckett — two of the best young pitchers in MLB — tangle in the Thursday game.

For the second time in the last three games in which he has pitched, closer Octavio Dotel blew a save in the top of the ninth and the Stros ended up losing to the Mets in the rubber game of their three game series at the Juice Box, 3-2.
In blowing this save, Dotel made the incredible boneheaded move of throwing Mike Piazza a two out, two strike fastball over the middle of the plate (with first base open to boot) that Piazza promptly deposited in the Astros’ bullpen 420 feet from home plate to tie the game at 2-2. Jason Phillips then won the game for the Mets with a solo yak off of Brandon Backe in the top of the 13th.
Except for Roger Clemens, it was bad karma all the way around for the Stros. The Rocket was brilliant, allowing only 2 hits and a walk over 7 innings with 10 strikeouts. However, the Stros’ bats went back to sleep as they collected 14 singles without an extra base hit. Moreover, in addition to the blunder of pitching to Piazza with first base open and two outs in the top of the ninth, Stros manager Jimy Williams continues his incomprehensible strategy of allowing superior out-maker Brad Ausmus — one of the worst hitters in Major League Baseball — to hit in key potential run scoring situations. As usual, Ausmus delivered with his usual strikeout and pop up.
Things don’t get any easier for the Astro hitters as they go to Miami tomorrow for a three game series against the Astro-killer Marlins pitching staff and then move on to Cincy for a three game series next weekend against the Reds. The Stros return home a week from Tuesday when they begin a two week period of playing the Cubs and the Cardinals in consecutive home and away series, with a two game set against the Cubs at the Juice Box being the first games of that key two week segment of the schedule.

The Stros showed signs of breaking out of their collective slump of over the past week as they cranked out 12 hits on Saturday night in defeating the Mets, 7-4.
Andy Pettitte won his fourth straight game since coming off the disabled list, giving up 4 runs on 6 hits with 6 strikeouts in 6 innings. While Miceli and Lidge were both strong in an inning of relief each, Dotel made things interesting in the ninth by walking the first two batters before getting the next three, two on K’s.
SS Adam Everett had a 2 run yak (his 3rd of the season) and 2B Jeff Kent also had a couple of hits and RBIs. Another positive sign for the Stros is that third baseman Morgan Ensberg continued his hitting resurgance. After posting an anemic .552 OPS (i.e., on base average + slugging percentage) during April, Ensberg has warmed up to a very respectable .951 OPS during May.
The story of this Major League Baseball season to date — The Rocket — goes for his eighth straight victory Sunday afternoon before an SRO crowd at the Juice Box. It should be fun.