Boxscore

The Cincinnati Reds continued their winning ways in the first game against the Houston Astros last night, beating the bottom-dwelling team 9-3.

Mike Leake started for the Reds and turned in a quality start, going 6 innings and allowing just 2 runs on 7 hits, 2 walks, and 6 strikeouts. His good outing netted him his 7th win on the season, giving him a slight chance at joining the rest of the members of the starting rotation with at least 10 wins.

The offense took a few innings to get going against the Astros, but once they started, they didn’t stop. In the 3rd, Zack Cozart broke the scoreless tie with his 15th home run, a 2-run shot that drove in Dioner Navarro. In the 5th, Jay Bruce broke the game open with his 28th home run on the season, driving in Chris Heisey and Ryan Ludwick to make the game 6-2.

The scoring continued in the 7th inning when Brandon Phillips singled in Chris Heisey. And in the 8th, Miguel Cairo had a rare hit to drive in Scott Rolen and advance Navarro to 2nd. A couple batters later, Heisey hit a grounder that scored Navarro.

It was a game that I expected the Reds to win, even with a pitcher in Leake who has struggled at times. Really, I almost expect the Reds to sweep this series. The Astros are that bad of a team. In fact, with this win in Houston, Cincinnati now has more wins at Minute Maid Park since the All Star Break than Houston does: 4-3. That’s some ineptitude that I hope the Reds can take advantage of.

The second game of the series tonight will feature Homer Bailey going against Lucas Harrell. Harrell, who has a record of 10-9, possesses 25% of the Astros’ wins. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 pm EDT.