Astros outfielder George Springer was given a microphone throughout Sunday night’s game, which proved to be fun. But the hitter also provided a boost for the club with his bat.
A dog day promotion is what brought Houston Astros fans to Sunday night’s game against the Angels. But it was essentially George Springer who kept television viewers watching.
The outfielder had a microphone pinned to him during the contest, and he proved to be quite the comedian. He also enjoyed a solid night at the dish, finishing a triple shy of the cycle.
But it was his antics that retained fans’ attention.
Springer smacked a line-drive single into right field to lead off the game. While taking his leads at first base, he gabbed with first baseman Jefry Marte, asking politely to not dive after his future hits in the “four hole.”
The Houston leadoff guy then joked that he might steal second base because Marte is slow. Springer acknowledged Marte’s speed in his past, but admitted the infielder isn’t speedy anymore.
George springer is a clown 😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/4pPbSSzeyF
— Baseball King (@BasebaIlKing) September 3, 2018
That wasn’t Springer’s biggest highlight of the night.
Angels star pitcher Shohei Ohtani tried to sneak a breaking ball by Springer in the bottom of the third inning. Instead of whiffing, he corked it over the left field fence.
The Astros hitter then relayed a message to his teammates in the Houston dugout, claiming the right-hander has lost some of his velocity. He wasn’t wrong, as the “ace” pitcher sat in the low-90s for much of his outing.
Ohtani leaned on his breaking balls throughout the start, which ended after just 2 1/3 innings. Needless to say, the two-way player didn’t look like his pre-injury self.
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Springer nearly crushed a second homer on the evening, but he missed the bleachers by a few inches – if that. Nevertheless, the hit resulted in a double, and the outfielder scored later that inning.
The right fielder has enjoyed a solid stretch at the plate since his return, hitting .333 across 31 plate appearances. Of course, half of his RBIs from that span came Sunday night.
But fans won’t complain, especially since he helped the club gain it’s second-straight victory. The club also re-took the lead in run differential.
With the win, the Astros own a two-and-a-half game lead over the Athletics, who won’t retreat from their second-place position. It also helped Houston salvage a series tie against lowly Los Angeles.
The Astros have an opportunity to extend their lead when they face off against the Twins next week. Then they square off with Boston in a televised game Sunday night.
And after his entertaining performance – in more than one way – against Los Angeles, Springer might get mic’d up once again in the ultimate American League showdown.