HOUSTON — They weren’t majestic towering blasts that would lead a highlight show. But they were enough to defeat the Mariners.
The Astros mustered all of five hits Tuesday evening, but two of them were wall-scraping solo homers in the shortest part of the park that provided the difference in a 2-1 win.
The Crawford Boxes are a collection of seats in left field of Minute Maid Park that sit atop a 19-foot wall and stretch across the span of left field. They are an abrupt outcropping from the typical shape of an outfield wall. And at just 315 feet from home plate, they are a pitcher’s nemesis and a hitter’s dream.
Hisashi Iwakuma had been abysmal much of spring training, struggling to find rhythm and balance in his delivery and consistency with his mechanics. But the 35-year-old put it all together when the game finally counted. Iwakuma pitched six innings and allowed just four hits. Unfortunately, two of those hits were the solo homers.
The only hit Iwakuma allowed in the first five innings was a solo homer off the bat of veteran catcher Brian McCann with one out in the third inning. The lefty swinging McCann stayed on a 1-1 sinker on the outside corner and hit it into the first two rows of Crawford Boxes for a 1-0 lead.
Iwakuma’s second hit allowed, which came to start the sixth inning, was basically the same result. A 2-1 splitfinger to Marwin Gonzalez was lifted to left field. The ball carried and left fielder Jarrod Dyson could only stand at the base of the wall and watch it float into the Crawford Boxes. MLB Statcast measured the homer at only 359 feet.
Iwakuma would allow two more hits in the inning, but worked out of it. He had three walks and two strikeouts.
Beyond the issues with the confines of the park is the larger issue of the Mariners not taking advantage of the environment. They’ve scored just one run in their first two games.
After being held scoreless for the first 12 2/3 innings of the season, the Mariners finally pushed across their first run on a single that traveled into the gap between third base and the mound.
With two outs and Mitch Haniger on third, Danny Valencia topped a ball from Lance McCullers to the left side of the mound. Third baseman Alex Bregman charged and fielded the ball but couldn’t make a play at first base. Haniger hustled home to tie the game at 1.
But that was all the Mariners would muster against McCullers and his nasty, swing-and-miss curveball. In an outing reminiscent to the two starts he had against Seattle last season, the Astros right-hander pitched six innings, giving up one run on five hits with two walks and seven strikeouts. He struck out five of the first 10 batters he faced. In his past three starts vs. the Mariners, McCullers has thrown 18 1/3 innings, giving up three runs and striking out 27 batters.
