GAME 76 - June 22: Astros Send Rays to the Devil

Houston 3, Tampa Bay 2

Quote of the Day: "I think it's horse (expletive)." (Shawn Chacon, on his reaction to being moved to the bullpen)

Warning: I am going to make an embarrassing admission. Before this game, I told my husband that I don't get emotional about the outcomes of the Astros games now; they've lost so many games in the past few weeks that I've just gotten kind of philosophical about it. Really, what's the difference if they lose one or two or five or ten more games, if it turns out to be a losing season anyway? (Not that I seriously believe that it will be a losing season...) So now, having said all that, I have to admit that when Carlos Lee hit that two-out home run in the sixth inning of today's game, putting the Astros ahead, I grinned ear to ear.

Actually, here's what happened: I burst into tears, clapped my hands, jumped up and down in front of the computer like a lunatic, and scared my poor dog. I am not joking: Even my Labrador thinks I'm psycho.

Then I spent the next hour, until Valverde safely tucked it away, gritting my teeth, pacing the kitchen, and worrying that they'd lose the lead, the game, and yet another series.

Not to worry. It might have been a bit more relaxing if the Astros could have put another few runs on the board, but they did manage to have just enough. The Astros have to feel fantastic about this accomplishment: They just won a series from the team that is but a hair behind the AL East leading Red Sox, the team that had just swept the Cubbies. But for a teensy little meltdown in the ninth last night, the Astros might have even swept the Rays this weekend.

The offensive stats in this game weren't much to look at: All of the runs were scored on home runs. The only serious damage that the Rays managed against Backe today was Longoria's two-run homer in the third, giving Tampa an early lead. Meanwhile, for the Astros, it was just Under Pants' - I mean Hunter Pence's - solo homer in the fifth, followed by El Caballo's two-run shot in the sixth.

Despite being lifted in the seventh in favor of a lefty arm, Backe pitched a terrific game, with a low pitch total - only 85 over 6 2/3 innings. He allowed just the two runs from that third-inning homer, on 6 hits, 4 walks, and 5 strikeouts. Once he pulled Backe, Cooper ran through a revolving door of relievers to get to his closer: His lefty Wright struck out his only batter in the seventh to end the inning with Rays runners stranded on second and third. After Wright walked the first batter in the eighth inning, Coop replaced him with Sampson, who quickly induced a ground-ball double play to empty the bases. Then, when Sampson walked the next batter on 4 pitches, it was Brocail's turn to defend the Astros' tiny lead. Happily, Brocail was much more effective than last night, ending the inning harmlessly with two pitches. In the ninth, Valverde didn't bother with drama. Ground out, one gone. Fly ball, that's two. Valverde struck out the third batter on three devilish pitches, turned his back to the plate, and allowed himself a small but emphatic emotional display. As the players were in line to high-five each other on the field, Coop ran up behind Carlos Lee and jumped onto his back.

And me? I burst into tears again, clapped my hands, and danced around the kitchen chanting "They won! They won!" The poor dog hid under the kitchen table.

In Other News: Matsui left the game after straining his right hamstring; he's day to day. Chacon has been moved from the rotation to the bullpen, due to inconsistency in the starting role. After Oswalt distributed copies of an excerpt from a book that claimed that the team's St Pete hotel was haunted, no ghost sitings were reported during this series.