It was a frustrating evening for the Houston Astros as their offense floundered in a 2-1 loss to the Rays in the first game of the ALCS. The same lineup that carried them through the ALDS against Oakland suddenly couldn’t score when it mattered, with some bad luck and an inconsistent strike zone mixed together with some poor at-bats to create a cocktail of calamity.
Framber Valdez had an excellent outing, tossing six innings of two-run ball. He allowed four hits and four walks while striking out eight, throwing 60 of his 95 pitches for strikes.