In advance of a critical three-game series starting Monday against the visiting Red Sox, Houston received exactly what it needed from starters Hunter Brown and Framber Valdez over the final two games of a three-game series with the Chicago White Sox. After Brown matched his season high of seven innings in a 6-1 win on Saturday, Valdez tossed seven scoreless innings in the Astros' 2-0 victory in the rubber match on Sunday. Brown and Valdez were so dominant that three Houston relievers -- Bryan Abreu, Bryan King and closer Josh Hader -- needed 51 pitches to cover the final 12 outs in the two victories.
The Red Sox, who are 3 1/2 games back of the final American League wild-card spot and were swept at home by the Astros last weekend, enter the opener Monday first in the AL in batting average (.262) and second in on-base percentage (.328) and slugging (.
441). The fact that Houston -- which holds a four-game lead in the AL West -- enters the series with a rested bullpen is certainly advantageous. "Huge.
It's big," said Astros manager Joe Espada, whose team is amid a stretch of 23 games over 24 days. "Just getting our starters to take us deep in the game is very important because it allows us to get those guys in the bullpen a breather and keep them fresh for this long stretch. Any time we get our starters to do what they're doing, it's really good, and we need more of that.
"Our guys understand that. I have to be smart in how I use our starters and how long I keep them in there be.