Inside the Astros

Houston Astros Offense Sputter As Blue Jays Even Series

The Houston Astros have had trouble finding consistency during the 2023 MLB season, something that was on full display Tuesday night as they fell to the Toronto Blue Jays.

Kade Kistner

Houston Astros Offense Sputter As Blue Jays Even Series
Houston Astros Offense Sputter As Blue Jays Even Series /
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The Houston Astros (8-10) fell to the Toronto Blue Jays 4-2 on Tuesday night as the Blue Jays evened the series at one apiece. 

The Astros have faced their fair share of struggles to start the 2023 MLB season and that was once again on display Tuesday. The offense had no answer for Toronto starter Chris Bassitt who pitched 6.1 innings without allowing a single run and giving up just three hits. 

Jose Urquidy went just 4.1 innings for Houston and allowed four earned runs raising his season ERA to 3.66 and strapped with the loss. 

However, the bullpen of Bryan Abreu, Hector Neris, Rafael Montero, and Ryan Pressly combined to keep the Blue Jays scoreless in the later innings. 

The lone bright spots of the night for the offense was an Alex Bregman double in the sixth inning, one of eight total hits on the night for the team. Bregman is starting to heat up after a very slow start to the year. Yordan Alvarez's RBI-single to score the lone run of the evening in the eighth inning was the only semblance of offensive life. 

As mentioned, Houston threatened a rally in the eighth inning when they scored two runs. Alvarez added an RBI, then Kyle Tucker notched an RBI-single to make it 4-2. Tucker fouled a two-seam fastball off of his knee just prior to recording the RBI-hit. 

The Astros have struggled to find any type of consistency this year. Whether it has been with the offense being feast or famine, or the pitching staff which has seen its fair share of challenges, Houston is still left searching for answers. 

They will get the chance to earn a series victory on Wednesday when they face Toronto in a rubber match with first pitch scheduled for 7:10 p.m. CT. 

Luis Garcia (0-2, 7.71 ERA) will face Jose Berrios of the Blue Jays. 

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  3. Report: Former Astros Pitcher Fiers' Contract Terminated By CPBL Club
  4. Six Houston Astros Declared Free Agents
  5. Watch: Yordan Álvarez's Home Run Wins Astros World Series
  6. Lucas Giolito Claims All Teams Were Cheating in 2017
  7. Dusty Baker Makes His Thoughts Known on Bonds and Judge Records
  8. Is it Time to Move on From the Houston Astros Cheating Scandal?
  9. Is There Any Hope for an Aging Yuli Gurriel?
  10. Astros' Álvarez Stopped Striking Out and Became the Best Hitter in Baseball

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Kade Kistner
KADE KISTNER

Kade Kistner is the publisher and beat writer for Sports Illustrated's Inside the Phillies. An alumnus of Tulane University, Kade graduated in 2017 with a degree in Latin American Studies and a minor in Spanish. Upon graduation, Kade commissioned into the United States Navy and attended Naval Flight School in Pensacola, Fl. He served as a Naval Aviator and was stationed in Jacksonville, Fl. During his time in school and the Navy, Kade began covering the MLB and NFL with USA Today, SB Nation, and Sports Illustrated. Kade covered the New Orleans Saints, Texas Rangers, and numerous other teams within the Sports Illustrated network before launching Inside the Phillies, Inside the Astros, and Inside the Cubs. You can follow him on Twitter at @KadeKistner, or if you have any questions or comments he can be reached via email at kwkistner@gmail.com.

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