Tonight was not pretty.
Pitching Performance
John Maine struggled. He lasted more than five innings for once, going five 2-3 innings. Unfortunately, he got absolutely rocked. He let in six runs and was charged with two more after he left the game. Maine let up 10 hits, and walked two, striking out four batters.
The third was not pretty, and I thought he wasn't going to make it out. The four-run inning was capped off by a Lance Berkman opposite field three-run home run.
Awful. Not good at all. His velocity was up, which was a good sign. He looked so strong in the first, but seemed to fall apart after that.
Duaner Sanchez pitched only one third of an inning, but allowed two hits, that allowed the two runs to score charged to Maine. Joe Smith and Brian Stokes combined to throw three perfect innings, striking out three Astros.
Sanchez's velocity was up, too, but it had no movement. Smith and Stokes looked nice, I must say.
Offensive Output
The bats were stagnant again, as Brandon Backe had a perfect game going through four innings.
In the fifth inning, Daniel Murphy drew a two-out walk to break up the perfect game, which was followed by a Ryan Church double, driving him in. This was Church's first RBI since returning to the Mets.
Another lull for the bats, as they were held off the board until the eighth inning. Brian Schneider continued his hot streak, smacking two-run blast to right center field, pushing Church across.
Schneider...another home run? Crazy. Too little, too late.
The Rest of the Story
Can't win 'em all, right?
Another quick game: 2:36
Game Ball: Ryan Church
