Astros All-Stars Alex Bregman and George Springer essentially made history Tuesday night. With their clutch hitting, they etched their names in Houston’s all-time books.
The Houston Astros never did it before. In every All-Star game since 1962, two players from the franchise never cracked home runs in the same game.
But that changed Tuesday night. And both bombs just happened to capture the American League club the victory.
Alex Bregman and George Springer both clobbered solo home runs off Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Ross Stripling. How ironic, being that the two clubs met in the World Series last year.
The highlight moment allowed Bregman to receive the franchise’s first-ever All-Star game MVP award. Few, if any, of the former Astros deserved the honor in former games.
Houston’s third baseman was in the middle of his first All-Star appearance as well, which makes the moment even sweeter. The Astros infielder enjoyed a stellar first half, nearly surpassing his home run total from last season.
However, this was surely the highlight of his season thus far. At 25, he seems set on becoming a multiple-time All-Star in Houston.
Yet, Springer also played a role in the game with his homer, providing some insurance for the AL. It was a perfect way to cap a 2-for-2 night for the outfielder.
“I’m just so proud of these guys to enjoy this moment.”- AJ Hinch to @Ken_Rosenthal on the @astros homers in the 10th. pic.twitter.com/hVnLEwCOko
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) July 18, 2018
The Astros players were just a small part of the home run barrage that took place in Nationals Park. And it was fitting that the reigning World Series champions pushed the AL to victory.
Whether this will somehow spark a tremendous run for Houston in the second half is unknown yet. But at least fans witnessed history in the making this week, especially considering it was somewhat unexpected.
How did other Astros perform?
Justin Verlander seemed worthy of starting the game in general, but his schedule did not permit it. The Houston ace pitched last weekend, forcing him to miss out on the bout.
Nevertheless, Charlie Morton earned some time on the bump, though it was a rough two innings. He surrendered two home runs to Trevor Story and Christian Yelich across that span, allowing the National League to tie the game at three in the seventh inning.
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But seven other pitchers in the game allowed balls to exit the park, so he wasn’t alone. Morton was the only Astros pitcher to enter the game. Gerrit Cole isn’t officially slated to pitch once games start again later this week, but he didn’t throw in this contest.
Meanwhile, Jose Altuve continued his rough stretch in All-Star affairs. The starting second baseman went 1-for-3 with a single. It was his first hit in the Midsummer Classic, though he’s participated in six of them now.
It’s quite a surprise, considering that the reigning AL MVP compiled more than 200 hits each of the past four years. Nevertheless, this is likely not the last time he hits in an All-Star game. He will have plenty more opportunities.
Overall, Astros manager A.J. Hinch seemed proud of what his players accomplished. Only two other Houston hitters smacked home runs in previous All-Star games, so the franchise doubled its total in one evening.
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Of course, essentially any performance in the past for the Astros can’t top what happened this week. But this may the beginning of a glorious run of clutch Houston experiences during the All-Star break.