Houston Astros 3 Pittsburgh Pirates 4 (April 25, 2007)
| 4
|
| |||
|
0 votes 
0 commentsAfter Maholm shutout the Astros the night before, Pittsburgh sent Zach Duke(1-2) to the mound to face rookie Matt Albers(0-2). Houston was seeking their first win of the year against the Pirates, after dropping the first four contests of the season.
Duke had been knocked out of his last two starts early, but he was sharp on this night. Although, Carlos Lee managed a sac fly off of him in the first.
The game remained 1-0 until the bottom of the fourth. Jack Wilson started things off with a single, followed by a double to right by Jose Bautista. Jason Bay grounded out to second and Adam LaRoche hit a sac fly, each scoring a run. The Pirates were on top 2-0.
In the bottom of the next inning, Brad Eldred drove Albers 2-1 pitch to deep left center for a homerun.
The game stood at 3-1 until the top of the ninth. The Pirates called on closer Salomon Torres to finish the game. Jason Lane started the Houston rally by singling to start the inning. After a fielder's choice, pinch hitter Luke Scott singled Adam Everett home to bring Houston within one run. Mark Loretta and Craig Biggio hit back-to-back singles, scoring the tying run. John Grabow relieved Torres and recorded the final two outs, but the damage had been done.
Pittsburgh failed to score in the bottom of the ninth. This sent the game into extra innings, tied at 3 runs apiece.
Houston got two men on base in the top of the tenth, but failed to score.
In the bottom of the sixteenth inning, Chris Duffy grounded through the hole on the left side of the infield for a single. Duffy attempted to steal second and Humberto Quintero's throw got past both middle infielders, allowing Duffy to advance to third with one out. Jack Wilson grounded into a fielder's choice, with Duffy being thrown out at home. It appeared as if Houston would escape the jam. Then, Jose Bautista singled and the Astros intentionally walked Bay to load the bases for the struggling Adam LaRoche. LaRoche hit a weak grounder that just squeeked under the glove of Everett for a single to win the game.
Game Notes:
- After playing the shortest game of the season the day before, this was the longest game of the season.
- Zach Duke threw 7 innings, allowing 1 run.
- Brian Moehler allowed the winning run.
- Duffy went 3 for 6.
- Biggio was 3 for 5.
Date
April 25, 2007
