DENVER — The Houston Astros arrived at Wednesday afternoon’s series finale against the Colorado Rockies trying to stop a slide that has turned a promising start into a rough road trip. After losing the first two games of the three-game set in Denver, Houston was looking to avoid an early-season sweep.
Cristian Javier was scheduled to start for the Astros, with Michael Lorenzen lined up for the Rockies. Javier entered the game 0-1 with a 12.96 ERA, after allowing 12 earned runs in 8.1 innings across his first two starts. He also had nine walks and three strikeouts in those outings, a stark sign of how far out of sync he has been. Lorenzen came in 0-1 with a 14.73 ERA after working 7.1 innings in his first two starts, which came against the Miami Marlins and Philadelphia Phillies.
The timing mattered because Houston did not just stumble in Denver. The Astros boarded a plane to Sacramento last week at 5-2, began a 10-game road trip against the Athletics, and dropped two out of three there before arriving in Colorado. That means a team that once looked in control is now trying to steady itself one game at a time.
The context around that slide is hard to miss. The road trip started after a successful season-opening home stand against the Los Angeles Angels and Boston Red Sox, and Hunter Brown was sidelined by an injury. The Rockies, meanwhile, were described as rebuilding, which only sharpened the disappointment for Houston after the first two losses of the series.
Wednesday’s finale offered the Astros one clean chance to leave Denver without a sweep hanging over them. Radio coverage was listed as KBME 790 AM/94.5 FM HD-2 and KLTN-TUDN 102.9 FM.
