(SportsRadio 610) -- Unfortunately for the Astros, who entered Thursday night's game against the Red Sox leading Major League Baseball in five major offensive categories, scoring eight runs was not enough to win the game.
But the offense is expected to carry this team throughout the season, as the Astros' pitching continues to face questions, mainly in the bullpen.
If starters can't go six innings or more, it's going to put a lot of pressure on the bullpen to keep games within reach. And that's what happened Thursday, when Houston's top pitcher Zack Greinke could only three innings in which he gave up four earned runs on seven hits.
The bullpen -- between Brandon Bielak, Blake Taylor and Enoli Paredes -- followed that by giving up another eight runs, six of them earned. Houston dropped the final game against Boston 12-8, failing to complete the sweep.
The Astros, however, entered the game leading MLB in runs scored (328), hits (573), batting average (.271), OBP (.343) and OPS (.778), while ranking second in doubles (122) and second in SLG (.436).
It's that type of offensive output the team has come to rely on this season.
Audacy MLB insider Tony Gwynn Jr. joined Clint Stoerner and "The Show" on Thursday to talk Astros, and also give his opinion on the league's crackdown on pitchers using sticky substances to affect their spin rate.
Listen to that entire interview here:
