Astros Set to Face Phillies Again with Brown on the Mound

HOUSTON: An initial double by Jeremy Peña ignited the offense, and Victor Caratini’s subsequent home run furnished essential insurance as the Houston Astros blanked the Philadelphia Phillies 2-0 on Wednesday at Daikin Park. This victory marked their second consecutive shutout in the series.

Peña commenced the bottom of the first with a double to right field against Phillies’ pitcher Zack Wheeler. He then scored on an RBI single by Isaac Paredes that slipped past shortstop Trea Turner, providing Houston with an early 1-0 advantage.

Wheeler, despite the defeat, presented a commendable performance, conceding only one run on four hits and registering eight strikeouts across six innings.

The Astros’ pitchers once again commanded attention, utilizing exclusively left-handed pitchers to effectively suppress Philadelphia’s offensive efforts.

Starting pitcher Colton Gordon contributed five scoreless innings, permitting four singles and striking out four without conceding any walks.

He received robust assistance from the bullpen, as Steven Okert, Bennett Sousa, Bryan King, and closer Josh Hader collectively delivered four shutout innings, accumulating 10 strikeouts without any walks.

The Phillies initiated a rally in the eighth, achieving consecutive singles courtesy of Brandon Marsh and Trea Turner. Subsequently, Kyle Schwarber loaded the bases with an infield hit; however, King averted the threat by striking out Alec Bohm and inducing a groundout from Nick Castellanos.

Caratini augmented the lead in the bottom of the eighth, launching his sixth home run of the season — a 423-foot shot to left-center off reliever Matt Strahm.

Hader secured his 21st save of the season with a flawless ninth inning, solidifying the Astros’ second successive 2-0 triumph over the Phillies.

Houston aspires to achieve a series sweep in Thursday’s concluding game, featuring Hunter Brown on the mound against Philadelphia’s Cristopher Sánchez.