The Milwaukee Brewers’ three-game win streak was snapped Wednesday afternoon at home, as they dropped their series finale against the Astros by a 9-1 final.
After both squads went down 1-2-3 in the first, Houston got to Quinn Priester in the second. He retired the first two batters of the inning but then allowed a single to Jake Meyers before Zach Dezenzo brought him around with a double to left.
The Brewers responded in the bottom of the inning with a pair of one-out singles, but Vinny Capra ended the rally with a 6-4-3 double play and the score remained at 1-0.
Neither team did much of anything in the third or the fourth, though Christian Walker reached second with one out in the fourth after a single and error by Isaac Collins. It was all for naught as Yainer Diaz grounded out and Meyers flew out to end the frame.
In the fifth, the Astros once again got to Priester. Dezenzo started the inning with a walk, and a fielding error by Caleb Durbin at second base allowed Brendan Rodgers to reach safely, putting runners at first and second with no outs.
Chas McCormick bunted the runners over and, with the infield in, Jeremy Peña hit a bouncer to third. Capra threw home to try to cut down Dezenzo, and he was initially called out on the tag. After a challenge, however, the call was overturned and the Astros had runners at the corners with one out and a 2-0 lead.
A passed ball by Eric Haase behind the plate allowed Rodgers to score, and suddenly it was 3-0. Priester walked Isaac Paredes and Walker to load the bases with two outs, but Diaz grounded out to help him escape any further damage.
Milwaukee got one back in the bottom of the inning on a solo shot from Haase, who hit it 425 feet to center off Framber Valdez.
Elvin Rodriguez replaced Priester in the sixth and looked shaky to start, allowing back-to-back walks. After retiring Rodgers on a deep flyout and McCormick on a strikeout, it looked like he might escape. Instead, Peña pulled his hands in and took the ball for a ride over the wall in left, putting Houston up 6-1.
No runners got past first base again until the ninth, when Peña doubled, Jose Altuve hit an infield single, and Paredes singled to score Peña. An awkward check swing groundout by Walker allowed both runners to advance with one out, and a two-run double by Diaz put Houston up 9-1, all but putting the game out of reach. Tyler Alexander then came on to get the final two outs in the inning on just three pitches.
In the bottom of the ninth, the Brewers went down with a little bit of a fight (against Josh Hader, in his first appearance in Milwaukee since being traded!), loading the bases on a double, walk, and hit-by-pitch, but ultimately leaving them that way to end the game.
Priester was fine after a pair of bad starts, allowing three runs (one earned) over five innings on three hits and three walks with three strikeouts. Rodriguez went 3 1⁄3 innings, allowing six runs on five hits (including the seventh homer allowed by him this year) and four walks, striking out a pair. Offensively, Milwaukee had just four hits, and Collins was the only player to reach more than once via a pair of walks.
On the other side, Valdez was dominant, with his only real blemish the homer from Haase. He went seven innings, striking out seven and allowing just three hits and a pair of walks. Bryan Abreu worked a perfect eighth, and Hader escaped without allowing any real damage.
Milwaukee finishes at an even 3-3 on the homestand as they head to Florida to take on the Rays at the Yankees’ spring training home, George M. Steinbrenner Field. Game one of that series is Friday night, with first pitch scheduled for 6:05 p.m. CT.