Astros 5, Tigers 4: Home runs bite Jordan Zimmermann again in loss

Jose Altuve put the first pitch of the game over the left field wall, and set the tone for the night as Jordan Zimmermann would fall victim to the long ball yet again in a 5-4 Detroit Tigers loss. JaCoby Jones tried to bring the Tigers back into the game singlehandedly, but the mid-inning rally fell one run shy as the Houston Astros hung on to beat the Tigers for the second consecutive night.

Zimmermann surrendered all five of the Astros runs via the home run. After Altuve’s leadoff home run in the first inning, Zimmermann gave up a two-run blast to Astros No. 9 hitter Tony Kemp in the second. Zimmermann also allowed a two-run homer to Tyler White in the fourth inning to put the Astros in front 5-0. The veteran righthander would last only one more inning, and his final line was an ugly one: five innings, six hits, five runs allowed (four earned), one walk, and three strikeouts.

The Tigers clawed back into the game in the bottom of the fourth. With runners on the corners and two outs, Dawel Lugo hit a ground ball that leaped over the glove of Carlos Correa and plated the Tigers’ first run of the night. Then, JaCoby Jones hit a laser into the Tigers bullpen for a three-run homer, drawing the Tigers within one run.

That would be as close as they would get, though. The Astros bullpen shut down the Tigers over the next five innings on just two hits, a walk, and nine strikeouts.

The good stuff

• Jeimer Candelario had a pair of hits at the top of the Tigers lineup. He hasn’t quite regained his early season form yet, but he is having a decent September so far, with 10 hits and five walks in 10 games.
• Christin Stewart also had a nice game, reaching base three times. Both of his walks came against left-handed starter Framber Valdez (who was admittedly a little wild).
• The bullpen was solid, if a little wild. Buck Farmer walked a couple of batters in his outing, but Louis Coleman retired Altuve to end the threat. Then, Coleman hit two batters to open the next inning, but he and Daniel Stumpf were able to work out of a bases-loaded jam without allowing a run.

The bad stuff

• Jordan Zimmermann still can’t figure out how to keep the ball in the park. He already had the highest home run rate of his career heading into this game, and allowed three more home runs tonight.
• Nicholas Castellanos went 0-for-4 and stranded four runners on base.
• Tigers pitchers walked four batters to just four strikeouts in this game. Meanwhile, Tigers hitters struck out 12 times, and only one of their five walks came around to score.