Houston Astros Offense Hits New Low in Crushing Loss

All the Houston Astros had to do was score two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning on Wednesday, and they would have won.

Instead, they only scored one point and lost.

It’s been that kind of season for the Astros, who fell to 24-32 with their 2-1 loss to the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park on Wednesday night.

Houston wasted a magnificent performance by Justin Verlander, who racked up nine strikeouts in seven innings on just one run. They also lost a good night in front of the bullpen, which didn’t allow an earned run and struck out six in 2 2/3 innings.

Unfortunately, the Astros bats were nowhere to be found.

They scored a run in the fourth inning, but came up empty beyond that, marking their seventh straight game where they scored in just one inning. All seven of their hits were singles and their 14 strikeouts were a season high.

This continues a terrible streak for Houston, which lost the first three games due to offensive ineptitude.

The Astros managed just five runs and were hitting .180 with two extra-base hits, four walks and 33 strikeouts. As a result, they wasted quality starts from Verlander, Framber Valdez and Hunter Brown against their AL West rivals.

Sure, the Mariners have a good pitcher, but Houston has to be better than that.

The Astros have now scored two runs or fewer in four of their last five games and five of their last seven games, seemingly forgetting how to hit.

Houston will look to bounce back and salvage the series finale Thursday afternoon before returning home to face the Minnesota Twins. The Astros will call upon rookie Spencer Arrighetti, who is 2-5 with a 6.93 ERA in his first eight MLB starts.

He will face Logan Gilbert, who has a 3.06 ERA and 0.96 WHIP in 11 starts this year. Gilbert is also 5-2 with a 3.15 ERA in 10 career starts against Houston, so the Astros will have their work cut out for them.

If Houston loses, it will be the fifth time the team has lost four or more consecutive games this season.