BSJ Game Report: Astros 7, Red Sox 4 - Boston falls flat again in sweep to Astros

All you need to know, in quickie form, about the Red Sox' loss to the Astros, complete with BSJ analysis and insight:

BOX SCORE

HEADLINES

Sox playoff hopes swept away by Astros: The Red Sox fell 7-4 to the Houston Astros, who picked up the series sweep with the win in the series finale. With the loss, Boston falls to 7.0 games behind the Rangers for the final AL Wild Card spot. The Sox finish August at 13-15 after losing four straight, five of their last six and seven of 10, including a 1-5 homestand. Kutter Crawford made it through just 2.2 innings, surrendering six earned runs on seven hits as Houston opened up an early lead with three-run spots in the second and third innings. Triston Casas went 3-for-4 with a run for Boston. Michael Brantley went 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI and a run for Houston. Alex Bregman was 2-for-5 with an RBI and a run. Martin Maldonado was 2-for-3 with an RBI and a walk, and Jeremy Peña was 2-for-4 with two runs and an RBI. 

TURNING POINTS

Top of the second: After Crawford started with a smooth 1-2-3 inning in the top of the first, things quickly unraveled his next time out. Chas McCormick got it started with a single before Brantley's ground-rule double moved the two into scoring position as Jonathan Singleton knocked in McCormick on a ground out. Peña's RBI ground-rule double and Martin Maldonado's RBI single opened a quick 3-0 hole. 

Top of the third: Crawford couldn't pull it together in his next half-inning, allowing back-to-back singles to Jose Altuve and Bregman before eventually walking Kyle Tucker to load the bases for McCormick's RBI groundout. Brantley did even more damage with a bases-clearing RBI single to further extend the lead 6-0 as the molehill quickly turned into a mountain for the Sox. 

TWO UP

Triston Casas: Quietly had a strong series amid the free-fall all around him. Went 3-for-4 with a double, a run and a K in this one, finishing the series 5-for-9 with two doubles, two runs, two RBI and four walks with two strikeouts. Led the way for the bottom of the order, which had a solid day, overall, going 4-for-11 combined with three runs and an RBI between Casas, Luis Urias and Connor Wong. Not dazzling, but the trio all but accounted for nearly all of Boston's offensive momentum on Wednesday, getting things started in a four-run sixth before traffic on the bases went by the wayside in the seventh. Casas is now slashing .336/.435/.664/1.099 with 24 runs, 26 RBI and 12 home runs since the All-Star break. 

Ceddanne Rafaela: Looked the part in his first MLB start, playing shortstop rather than outfield. He picked up his first career RBI and extra-base hit with a double off the Monster in the bottom of the seventh to cut it to 7-2. Scored his first run later in the inning. Finished 1-for-4 with the RBI, a run and a K. 

"It was very, very, very exciting to be on that field and to compete," Rafaela said of his first start. "It's been fun. It's been crazy. To be able to live my dream is a privilege. Not many players just get here where I am right now."

THREE DOWN

Kutter Crawford: Once again, the Red Sox could not get a quality start from their pitching staff. Crawford barely made it through 2.2 innings and got knocked around in the process, particularly in the second and third frames. Left a four-seamer right over the middle for Michael Brantley’s ground-rule double, which got everything started for Houston. Finished with six earned runs on seven hits and a walk with one K. His command and velocity continue to slip as his innings tick up down the stretch. 

"It's super frustrating," Crawford said of his inability to provide more innings. "I know I'm probably not the only one that's frustrated with the result. As a staff, we need to be able to pitch deeper into ballgames. Obviously, I wasn't able to do that today."

Garrett Whitlock: Tough fourth inning, even if he only gave up one more run to make it 7-0,  coming on after Joe Jacques cleaned up Crawford’s mess in the third. Left too many pitches over the plate, including a sinker down the heart on a Jeremy Peña triple (which should have been an inside-the-park HR). Finished with one run on four hits with a pair of walks in two innings of work. 

Rob Refsnyder: His 3-for-4 outing against the Dodgers this past weekend was a flash in the pan as Refsnyder’s August-to-forget continues, even against left-handed pitching as he went 0-for-4 in this one against Houston. He’s hitting .160 this month after batting .324 in July. His groundout put a quick stop to the two-out momentum going in the sixth. 

NOTABLE 

Houston starter Framber Valdez had a perfect game going until the bottom of the fourth when Justin Turner laced a single to center field. 

The Red Sox were swept for the seventh time this season and fourth time at home, finishing their stretch of 16 games in 16 days at 7-9. 

Boston has given up 10 or more hits in seven of their last eight games after allowing 12 on Wednesday. 

Kenley Jansen pitched for the first time in a week, throwing a hitless eighth inning with one strikeout.  

Chris Martin and John Schreiber also threw hitless and scoreless innings with one strikeout each. It's a shame that the Red Sox tried so hard to save those three only for it to mean nothing.  

QUOTE OF NOTE

"We didn't pitch. That's the bottom line, right?" Alex Cora said of the poor homestand. "I think since New York, you know, the starters have been grinding through it, we're not getting deep enough and we've been paying the price the last 10 days. ... Combination of 16 days [with games] and not going deep into games. They're trying, they're grinding and they're doing their best. You know, it didn't happen in this stretch. We got the off day tomorrow, and hopefully from Friday on, we can reset and go."

UP NEXT

The Red Sox will be off Thursday before heading to Kansas City for a three-game set with the Royals, beginning Friday at 8:10 p.m. ET. LHP James Paxton (7-4, 3.99 ERA) will face RHP Jordan Lyles (3-15, 6.51 ERA).