Astros Quiet Boston Bats, Even ALCS

Much to the dismay of the Houston pitching staff, Boston's bats have been noisier than a teething infant for most of the American League Championship Series. In Games 2 and 3, both of which Boston won, the Sox outscored the Astros by a combined 21 runs.

But on Tuesday evening, Houston found the right formula to nurse the Sox back to sleep. They took Game 4 by a score of 9-2 and evened the series at two games a piece.

After starter Zack Greinke allowed two runs in the first, it looked like Houston was about to make another dirty diaper. However, five Houston relievers cleaned things up and allowed just four total hits and no runs for the remainder of the game.

"What a job our bullpen did," said Astros manager Dusty Baker.

The bullpen wasn't the only strong performer. Out of nowhere, the Houston offense that had slept so quietly for two games suddenly exploded when it mattered most. With two outs in the top of the ninth inning, the Astros busted open the tie ballgame by scoring seven runs and taking an astounding 9-2 lead.

"This is one of the great things about baseball," Baker added. "When you're dead in the water and things aren't going good, and then all of a sudden, boom, boom, boom, and you've got seven runs."

Boston's offense was unable to generate a response in the bottom of the ninth, and their five total hits ended a streak of six consecutive games with 10 or more hits, per ESPN. The loss prevented Boston from putting the baby to bed and taking what would've been a commanding 3-1 series lead.

“There’s not much to say in that clubhouse. We know where we’re at," said Sox manager Alex Cora. "They have a good team. I think it was a good game until the end, right? We were one pitch away from ending that inning, and it didn’t happen, and then they scored seven. So we’ll be ready tomorrow. Just like every day. You win, you turn the page. You lose, you turn the page, and be ready.”

We'll see tonight which team can deliver a win in Game 5 before they both pack up and head to Houston's crib for another playdate on Friday.

 

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