GAME 116 - August 9: Season Ending Pinky for Lee

Houston 3, Cincinnati 1

Quote of the Day: "It's tough to lose him. It didn't look good. He carried us the last month and a half. It's a big hole to fill... I'm just now starting to suck it up."" (Cooper, on Lee's injury)

It wasn't intentional, but the Reds did manage to find a way to get rid of that pesky Carlos Lee, who had played a large part in their losses in this series. In the third inning of Saturday night's game, Bronson Arroyo's high inside pitch smashed Lee's left pinky, causing him to fall to the ground in pain. When he took off his batting glove, the little finger was dripping blood. They later announced that he'd need surgery on Monday, and that the 6-8 week recovery would probably take Lee out for the rest of the season.

Despite that loss, the Astros did manage to eke out the win. Brian Moehler had another great start, throwing 7 innings, giving up only 1 run on 5 hits, no walks, and 3 strikeouts. Now with a 8-4 record and 3.83 ERA, Moehler has really been the Astros most consistent starter this season. Not bad for a guy who was a non-roster invitee in Kissimmee. Fiven that the Astros only put 3 runs of their own across, it was good that the bullpen was back to form to back up Moehler. Geary and Byrdak split the eighth inning, giving up only a single walk and no hits between them. Valverde came in with a two-run lead; this time it was a save situation and he didn't mess around. He took them down 1-2-3 to save the game (#28).

The Astros got first blood again, with a run in the first. Matsui opened with a full-count walk, Tejada singled to move him to third, and Berkman drove him in with a single to right. There wasn't much offensive action for until the fifth inning, when Moehler helped himself with a leadoff double, moved to third on Matsui's sac bunt, and scored on a wild pitch. Tejada added on another run with a solo homer in the seventh, making it 3-0. Moehler gave up one run to the Reds in the seventh, on 3 singles. That 3-1 score was where the game was when I checked after the Sabbath ended, and that was where it remained when I got home from the Tishe B'av service Saturday night.

So it was a good win but a big loss. Lee probably won't be back this season unless the Astros get into the playoffs. Can they do that without El Caballo, who has been such a dominating factor in their recent offensive surge? We'll see - it's time for Berkman to return to being a power hitter. I don't expect Abercrombie, brought up from Round Rock, to fill Lee's shoes. I expect to see Erstad out in left field for the most part. Maybe everyone can pitch in and make up for the hole in the lineup. I'm just starting to suck it up too.