The Road to Somewhere for the Astros

Another road game and another win for the Astros on their current ten-game stretch away from Minute Maid Park. Berkman did his thing with a first inning blast, his major league-leading 14th. Tejada did his thing with the game-winning RBI single in the 7th inning. Pence did his thing extending his hitting streak to 12 games and raised his batting average to a season high .287.
The team is now 5-1 on the current trip and now 12-12 overall away from home.
Here are the non-Lance Berkman related notes.
- The Astros have won both of Brian Moehler's starts as he's pitched 10 innings and allowed just 3 runs. The team is actually 7-1 when Wandy Rodriguez's turn in the rotation comes up. (3-1 in Rodriguez's 4 starts, 2-0 in Jack Cassell and Moehler's starts).
- Since allowing a run on 4/17 in Philly, Jose Valverde has appeared in 13 games. Here are his numbers...2-0, 0.00 ERA, 9 saves, 13.1 IP, 14 K, 5 H. No closer in the league has saved more games during that span.
- No team in the majors has more road wins.
- No team in the majors has played more games away from home (24 RD, 17 HM)
- Since starting the season 6-12, the team is now 17-6. (15-6 since Kazuo Matsui returned from the DL)

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Great story in Cincinnati's extra-inning win last night. Former Rice Owls infielder Paul Janish was called up by the Reds and joined the team just hours before the ball game, hoping to get into the game to make his major league debut. He entered in the 8th as part of a double-switch with the Reds up 6-0. He batted in the 8th and popped out. But after the Marlins scored 6 runs in the top of the 9th and handed Francisco Cordero his first blown save of the season.
So Janish came up to bat again in the bottom of the tenth, runners on 1st & 2nd, 2 outs and he was was facing an 0-2 count. Naturally he sliced the ball down the right field line for his first major league hit and the game-winner for the Reds. He also got a bloody nose in the celebration and his mom was there to see it all.

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I dropped the Bill O'Reilly Inside Edition meltdown yesterday. Stephen Colbert gives us all his own "pseudo" meltdown in a move of solidarity to the fiery O'Reilly. Freakin' hilarious.

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