Astros 3, Orioles 1
HOUSTON -- Rookie right-hander Lance McCullers delivered the strongest start of his brief and promising career, recording 11 strikeouts while tossing a complete game in the Houston Astros' 3-1 win over the Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday night at Minute Maid Park.
McCullers (2-0), who increased his strikeout total in each of his three prior starts, pitched with an efficiency that had been lacking since he made his major league debut May 18 against the Oakland Athletics. His worked six innings in his second career start, a win at Detroit on May 23, but needed 100 pitches to do so. McCullers had thrown just 92 pitches by the close of the eighth inning against the Orioles (23-28).
Upon returning for the ninth, McCullers faced the top of the Baltimore order. He retired third baseman Manny Machado and left fielder David Lough with haste but surrendered a two-out, two-strike single to center fielder Adam Jones, who recorded two of the Orioles' four base hits. But McCullers recovered to strike out slugging first baseman Chris Davis on his 107th pitch. He did not issue a walk.
The Astros (34-20) supported McCullers with a trio of solo home runs off Orioles right-hander Miguel Gonzalez (5-4) en route to claiming this four-game series with Baltimore.
Astros first baseman Chris Carter, who entered Wednesday riding a 10-game hitting streak, maintained his torrid run by bashing a homer with two outs in the second inning, a 377-foot solo shot to left field off Gonzalez. When Carter strolled to the plate for his second at-bat in the fifth, Gonzalez had retired eight consecutive batters. Carter victimized him again, this time with a 453-foot blast to left-center.
The long balls were Carter's ninth and 10th of the season.
The Orioles had pulled even against McCullers before Carter smacked his second homer, stringing together a one-out triple from center fielder Adam Jones and a two-out RBI single from right fielder Delmon Young in the fourth. However, McCullers was sharp before that speed bump, and he resumed his efficient ways soon thereafter, retiring the Orioles in order in the fifth, sixth and seventh to set a career high in innings pitched.
Meanwhile, the Astros kept bashing away, with right fielder George Springer adding a line-drive homer to left, his eighth of the season, with one out in the sixth inning for a 3-1 lead.
NOTES: Astros LHP Dallas Keuchel was selected the American League Pitcher of the Month for a second consecutive month after finishing 4-1 with a 2.62 ERA in May. Keuchel struck out 38 batters in a league-leading 44 2/3 innings and allowed a .233 opponents average while closing the month with consecutive complete games. ... The Orioles recalled LHP T.J. McFarland from Triple-A Norfolk while optioning RHP Oliver Drake to Norfolk. McFarland went 0-1 with a 3.60 ERA in five appearances for Baltimore last month. Drake posted a 3.52 ERA in five appearances after his recall from Norfolk on May 23. ... The Orioles acquired minor league RHP Joe Gunkel from the Red Sox in exchange for OF Alejandro De Aza and cash considerations. Gunkel, 23, is 12-7 with a 3.05 ERA in 54 appearances covering three minor league seasons, with 178 strikeouts in 165 innings.