Tucker makes heroic catch to end wild series, hits one of five Astros HRs
ANAHEIM — A wild 24 hours of baseball at Angel Stadium got here right down to a matter of inches. A collection through which the Astros and Angels mixed for 54 runs and 14 house runs got here right down to a defensive play. A day after the Astros suffered a gut-punch loss to the Angels, they turned the tables Sunday evening.
“That was big,” stated McCormick, who was 7-for-11 with three homers within the collection. “It felt like the identical precise recreation as [Saturday] evening, simply the opposite manner round. It was good to come back again and win that recreation. It was big to get some momentum into the off-day tomorrow and convey that into Colorado.”
One day after blowing a six-run lead within the seventh inning with ace pitcher Framber Valdez and coughing up a three-run lead within the ninth inning in a 10-inning loss, the Astros overcame a 7-3 deficit within the seventh inning to stun the Angels.
“They broke our hearts last night, and we broke their hearts today,” Astros supervisor Dusty Baker stated. “Baseball is such a each day recreation. It’s onerous to foretell the end result, however that was a giant, huge, huge win for us.
“Getaway day and we were operating on fumes out of our bullpen and trying to mix and match, and the guys kept fighting and fighting. That was a huge homer that Bregman hit. … That homer that Tuck hit and the play that he made that saved the game. He had a big day, too.”
A bases-clearing, three-run double by Taylor Ward within the seventh off Rafael Montero put the Angels forward, 7-3. That spelled doom for an Astros crew that had stranded 11 runners on base within the first six innings, together with leaving the bases loaded within the first and third innings. Not so quick.
McCormick, who led off the seventh with a homer, slugged a two-run homer within the eighth off All-Star nearer Carlos Estévez to make it 7-5. The Angels have been one out from closing out the Astros within the ninth when Bregman hit a first-pitch slider from Jaime Barria 397 toes over the left-field wall to place Houston forward, 8-7. Tucker adopted with a homer — and a bat flip — to cap a 4-for-5 evening with an essential insurance coverage run.
“Just to give the team the lead in the ninth inning after a crazy three games of swings, it was nice to get out in front, and Tucker followed it up with an insurance run and we ended up really needing it,” stated Bregman, who additionally went 4-for-5. “Both teams competed all series long, and you can tell with how many runs were scored in the seventh inning or later, how many lead changes there were. Very happy with today.”
Of course, Angels famous person Shohei Ohtani was going to make an affect earlier than the evening was over. He homered off reliever Phil Maton within the ninth, sparking a rally and placing some dread into Baker.
“It was happening the same way it did [Saturday] night — Ohtani gets them back in the game with a homer,” Baker stated. “I go, ‘Oh, no, please no.’”
The Angels saved going. They had two batters on base within the ninth with two outs when Matt Thaiss hit a sinking line drive to proper middle. Tucker raced to the hole and made a diving catch to forestall the tying run — and perhaps the successful run — from crossing house plate. Game over.
“It was a little tough because it got in the lights a little bit back there, but I was just trying to make a play on it and felt I had to dive to at least have a chance on it,” stated Tucker, who coated 60 toes to make the catch.
With that, the Astros exhaled and smiled. They felt lucky to flee Anaheim with a collection win and buckled their seatbelts slightly tighter for what’s shaping as much as be a wild second half.
“Up and down the lineup, we have guys that know how to win, know how to compete, do the little things right,” Bregman stated. “When we do the little things right, we’re damn hard to beat.”
