8th-inning rally wins Astros another nailbiter

HOUSTON -- The Tigers’ win probability Saturday afternoon was 77 percent when Houston pinch-hitter Aledmys Díaz swung at the first pitch he saw leading off the eighth inning and popped it up to first base. With the way the Astros were swinging the bats, 77 percent was probably generous.

But then, trailing by one run, the Astros flipped over their batting order and began to piece together a rally. The Tigers' win probability dropped faster than their spirits. A one-out single by Jose Altuve got the Astros started, and Michael Brantley's 107.4 mph triple into the right-field corner tied the game.

The Astros win probability at that point: 74 percent.

Brantley eventually came around to score on a bases-loaded walk to Kyle Tucker by Tigers reliever Michael Fulmer, putting the Astros ahead, and Ryan Pressly shut the door with a 1-2-3 ninth inning to seal the Astros' 3-2 win. With that, the Astros have won six in a row, including three consecutive 3-2 victories over the Tigers, to improve to 17-11.

“This lineup is always going to fight to the end,” Brantley said. “We have a great group of guys that work hard to grind out at-bats, and grind out good at-bats, over and over and over. That’s not necessarily how you draw it up, but we’ll take the win.”

As strong as the Astros’ pitching has been this season -- they ranked second in the American League with a 3.10 team ERA entering Saturday -- their offense isn’t making anyone forget the 1927 Yankees…or the 2021 Astros. During their six-game winning streak, the Astros have scored exactly three runs in four different games, in addition to a 4-0 win over Seattle on Tuesday.

“This team is full of fight,” Astros manager Dusty Baker said.

The Astros are averaging 3.8 runs per game for the season (and during their six-game winning streak), and are slashing .218/.296/.382 through the first 28 games of the season. Through their first 28 games last year, they slashed .253/.318/.404 and averaged 4.9 runs, but went 15-13.

On Saturday, the clutch eighth-inning hits from Altuve and Brantley ignited the Astros' game-winning rally. But back-to back walks by Michael Fulmer later in the inning to the struggling Yuli Gurriel (four pitches) and Tucker (five pitches) loomed just as large.

“Those pitches weren’t really tease pitches, they weren’t really that close,” Baker said. “Everybody loves to score runs, but the name of the game is just to score one more than them. I know we’ve spoiled people by scoring a lot of runs, but the pitchers are still ahead of the hitters. We’re catching up, but they’re still ahead.”

The Tigers intentionally walked Astros' slugger Yordan Alvarez with two outs in the eighth to put runners at first and third for Gurriel, who was in the midst of an 0-for-13 slump. He drew a walk to load the bases for Tucker, who followed with another walk to force home Brantley with the go-ahead run.

“I was going up there thinking he was going to throw me four-seamers or cutters down and in, but I was making sure he was going to be able to throw [them] for a strike first,” Tucker said. “Brantley’s at-bat, he was throwing cutters down and in, even the one he hit. He was having a little trouble with Yuli, so I kind of went up there and made sure I got a strike. Even the one I swung at probably wasn’t a strike.”