GAMES 13-15: Astros Catch Some Fish for Second Series Win

GAME 13 - April 20: Astros 7, Marlins 5

GAME 14 - April 21: Astros 5, Marlins 4

GAME 15 - April 22: Marlins 5, Astros 1

It's funny how getting a couple of wins changes your world view: You get greedy. After that dismal 8-loss start, the Astros went on to win 5 of their next 6 games - a series win against the Cubs, and then the first two games of the Marlins series. So was it any surprise that we are all wanting (no, expecting!) to see them sweep the Fish? Maybe even go on and win all the rest of the games of the season?

They didn't sweep, and they won't win all the rest of the games of the season. For the first two games of the series, the Astros played some good, come-from-behind, clutch-hit baseball. They scored some runs at the right moment - especially by our surprisingly good bench. They won a series from a team that hadn't lost a series yet this year. They started to look like winners. And then they finished up by looking sort of helpless in Game 3, kind of like the first 8 games of the season.

But it's totally different. With a few wins behind them, this loss just becomes a case of "you can't win them all." Even the best team loses a third of the time.

The big news for this series was the return of Lance Berkman. In his first game back he hit a double and a pair of RBI ground-outs. Second game he went 0 for 4, but managed to get another RBI. In the third game he hit a pair of singles. With a .250 BA, no homers, it's not like we suddenly have a monster power hitter in the line up -- yet -- but it changes the dynamics of the line up. After running different lineups in every game at the start of the season, Mills may be getting a bit more stability soon.

Most of the Astros starters are getting a slow start at collecting wins this season, and the two wins in this series were no exception. In both games the Astros came from behind, earning wins for the bullpen and more saves for Lindstrom. The starting pitchers for this series weren't bad. It was the bottom end of Houston's rotation - Myers, Norris, and Paulino -- and in general they pitched solid but not newsworthy starts.  But the bullpen was terrific - giving up only one run in 9 innings in relief. The bullpen has been a wonderful surprise this year, as I started to point out back in Spring Training. They have been much better than their ERAs might indicate, since a single meltdown this early in the season has devastating effects on the numbers.

Next up: The Pirates are coming to town, fresh off a 20-0 loss against the Brewers. One might think that this would be the time to rack up some wins against the hapless Pirates, but the Astros have had some bad luck against Pittsburgh in the past. Roy's on the mound tonight. I'm greedy - how about a no hitter? I will be hurrying to turn on my computer when the Sabbath ends tomorrow night to find out how it went.