Giants Stun Astros 7-2 as Cypress Creek’s Jordan Hicks Silences Houston Hitters

Tamed by one of their own, the Houston Astros The lineup maintained its early-season sluggishness on Monday night.

Jordan Hicks, the right-handed pitcher for the Giants hailing from Cypress Creek, limited his hometown team to just one hit across six innings. The San Francisco squad jumped ahead by five runs with Hicks' support, and despite an awakening offensive effort from Houston in the later frames, they couldn’t close the gap, resulting in a final score of 7-2 during the first game of a three-game set at Daikin Park.

In the eighth inning, Houston had only one hit out of 19 at-bats when they had runners in scoring positions this season. An infield single by Jose Altuve doubled their number of hits for the day. Later, Isaac Paredes smashed a double off the left-field wall, bringing home two runs — marking his first RBIs since joining the Astros — which narrowed their gap to 5-2.

Left-handed pitcher Erik Miller neutralized the threat by throwing a 99 mph sinker past Yordan Alvarez. In the ninth inning, the Giants added two more runs against Rafael Montero. This season, Houston has managed only two or fewer runs in three out of their first four games, with the exception being when they scored three runs in one game.

ASTROS INSIDER: The team isn't concerned about the offense's sluggish beginning to the season.

Hicks, who is 28 years old, was both electrifying and effective. In just six innings, he threw only 72 pitches. At various points, he dominated Houston batters using a sinking fastball that reached up to 100 miles per hour and a sharp-breaking slider. Following some shoulder issues that cut short his 2024 campaign, Hicks supposedly gained 15 pounds and improved the strength of his shoulder as well as his lower body.

His performance was clear during his opening game of the season. Hicks clocked an average velocity of 98 mph on his sinker, which is a significant increase of 3.5 mph compared to the previous year. In this match, he gave up only one hit—a single by Christian Walker—during the first frame. Following that, he consecutively struck out 14 consecutive batters until Altuve broke the sequence with a leadoff walk in the sixth round.

Hicks issued walks to two batters but managed to strike out six. His performance in the second inning showcased his capabilities. He struck out Jeremy Peña, Cam Smith, and Mauricio Dubón, all of whom were called out, using only eleven pitches altogether. Both Smith and Dubón required three pitches each, as Hicks threw them fastballs at 98-99 mph on the outer edge of home plate.

In the eighth inning, Paredes' double marked the Astros' third extra-base hit over four games. On Monday, they managed only three hits, received three walks, and fanned 10 times.

A real steal

Ronel Blanco, the Astros' starting pitcher, did not struggle significantly with opposing teams stealing bases during the previous season. Teams only attempted to steal 10 bases off him, getting successful steals just seven times; he also recorded one pickoff. On the other hand, the Giants secured the second-lowest number of stolen bases across all major league teams in 2024.

On Monday, however, the Giants capitalized on Blanco’s mistakes on the basepaths. In the second inning, Heliot Ramos swiped second as Patrick Bailey struck out looking. This advancement put Ramos in scoring position, which he exploited when Wilmer Flores grounded an elevated inside fastball just foul along the left-field line for a hit, allowing Ramos to come home.

During the fifth inning, Mike Yastrzemski hit a single with one out. After taking his initial lead, he started running towards second base. However, Blanco quickly stepped back and fired an immediate throw to first base instead of covering the bag. Undeterred, Yastrzemski dove safely onto second despite the lack of a thrown ball, advanced to third when Tyler Fitzgerald executed a successful bunt, and ultimately crossed home plate following LaMonte Wade Jr.'s sacrifice fly toward shallow right field.

Wade’s sacrifice fly yielded the first test of Smith’s throwing arm in right field. Smith caught the ball 255 feet from home plate, per Statcast, with time to gather his feet and set his momentum toward home plate. His one-hop throw to the plate registered at 93.6 mph, per MLB, but tailed up the third-base line.

Gusto debuts

As the Astros were behind 5-0 heading into the seventh inning, Ryan Gusto trotted out of the bullpen for his big-league debut — a moment that had been scheduled much earlier than anticipated.

Gusto, the 26-year-old right-handed pitcher, was promoted from Triple-A Sugar Land to start the Astros' regular-season finale last year in Cleveland. However, rain caused the postponement of that game, pushing back Gusto’s first appearance with the team. gained the last position in Houston’s relief pitching squad This spring and did not make an appearance during the opening series against the Mets.

On Monday, Gusto pitched for two innings without allowing any runs. He got Wade to hit a fly ball to the left field for the first out. Then, he allowed Willy Adames to get a single. However, Gusto managed to retire Jung Hoo Lee on a line drive and ended the frame by striking out Matt Chapman with a 96.6 mph fastball.

Ramos hit a double at the start of the eighth inning. Gusto left him stranded by striking out his next three batters.

Verlander: 'Both sides were interested' in trade

During his most recent comeback to Houston, Justin Verlander spoke about the discussions he had with the Astros during the offseason prior to joining the Giants. Read more here .

Promising indicators for Ort and Whitley

Pitchers Kaleb Ort and Forrest Whitley both performed admirably during their live batting practice sessions over the weekend, according to manager Joe Espada.

Espada mentioned that Ort and Whitley have another live BP planned for this week: "After that, I believe they will be prepared to potentially kick off the season shortly."

Ort (sore left oblique muscle) and Whitley (left knee bone bruise) began the season on the 15-day injured list, effective retroactively from March 24, which made them available to return as early as April 8.

McCullers' upcoming game will be at the Double-A level.

Following his appearance of two innings on Sunday with the Triple-A Sugar Land team, right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. is set to have his upcoming rehabilitation assignment with Double-A Corpus Christi over the weekend, according to manager Joe Espada.

During his initial inning on Sunday, McCullers fanned all three batters he faced. In the following inning, he gave up two hits and issued one walk. His appearance concluded after throwing 35 pitches in his third outing since undergoing flexor surgery.

I found his performance impressive," Espada mentioned, who went to the game in Sugar Land to see McCullers. "His fastball hit 95 mph, and his breaking balls were solid. In the second inning, though, he struggled with some batters, giving up two runs. Nonetheless, I believe he limited the harm done and eventually had a strong showing.

Sugar Land is set to travel for three out of its next four series, starting with a journey this weekend to Durham, N.C. Meanwhile, Double-A Corpus Christi will also be away this weekend as they head to Frisco, which involves a less lengthy commute.

Altuve returns to his usual position

Joe Espada has maintained since spring training That Jose Altuve might take up second base occasionally this season, so finding him in the lineup at second on Monday shouldn’t be surprising.

Starting from Monday’s game against the Giants, Ronel Blanco recorded the second-lowest ground-ball rate amongst returning Astros pitchers last year. By positioning Jose Altuve at second base and Mauricio Dubón in left field, Houston strengthens their outfield defense, supporting a pitcher inclined towards inducing fly balls.

Espada said he “just wanted to get (Altuve) in there” at second base and “thought today was the best day to get him a start at second.”

Yordan Alvarez hasn’t played in left field so far this season, but if Espada plans to use him there during a game on this home stand, Wednesday’s final matchup with Framber Valdez might be an appropriate time for such a move.

New look makes debut

The game on Monday will be the first for the Astros wearing their new City Connect uniforms. which were revealed publicly just two weeks ago Similar to the initial City Connect design from 2022-24, the updated version incorporates the space theme while also paying homage to the brand’s history.