The night was supposed to be about second chances. It became the same old story.
Tatsuya Imai’s return from the injured list lasted four innings and produced six runs, two home runs, three walks, and two hit batters Tuesday at Daikin Park as the Houston Astros lost their fourth straight game to the Seattle Mariners, 10-2. Imai, who has struggled to adjust to life and pitching in the major leagues since signing a three-year, $54 million contract in January, had been sidelined since April 13 with arm fatigue.
The defeat dropped the Astros to 16-27, tied with the Los Angeles Angels for the worst record in baseball and the franchise’s worst 43-game start since 2014. It is now nine straight losses to Seattle dating to last season.
Imai entered with a simplified approach: nothing but fastballs and sliders, no scouting reports, just attack the zone with his best stuff. It worked for exactly one inning. He retired the side in order in the first, and the Astros even tied the game 2-2 heading into the fourth.
Then the inning started with what appeared to be a called third strike on Randy Arozarena. A challenge overturned it. On the next pitch, Imai hit Arozarena in the hand. Luke Raley saw seven pitches before a slider struck him in the foot. Four fastballs to J.P. Crawford missed for a walk, loading the bases.
After a mound visit, Dominic Canzone stepped in. He had whiffed at two low sliders earlier in the game and got another one, this time hovering over the heart of the plate. He crushed it 381 feet to right for a grand slam, his fourth of the season, and the game was effectively over.
“I thought that was kind of a turning point,” manager Joe Espada said of the Arozarena challenge.
Imai finished the fourth at 80 pitches and was pulled. His final line: four innings, five hits, six runs, three walks, two hit batters, two home runs. The Mariners averaged a 96.6 mph exit velocity on the 13 balls they put in play against him. In 12⅔ total MLB innings, Imai has now walked 14 batters and his ERA stands at 9.24.
“Of course, it’s not what I imagined for the result,” Imai said in a subdued clubhouse. “But we’re in season and it is my responsibility to get the results.”
Espada said Imai will make his next start.
The Astros’ offense managed only five hits and scored both of their runs before Imai’s outing fell apart: a Braden Shewmake RBI single in the second and a Christian Walker RBI double in the third. Bryan Woo was dominant, striking out nine over six innings and lowering his career ERA against Houston to 3.91.
Shewmake, at least, continues to be a quiet revelation. The former first-round pick, claimed off waivers and acquired in a minor trade on April 19, went 2-for-4 and is now hitting .357 in seven games with the Astros.
Jayden Murray followed Imai with three innings, allowing four more runs. AJ Blubaugh added two in the eighth. The final margin of 10-2 was not misleading.
“We’ve just got to get him right,” Espada said of Imai. “That needs to be better.”
The Astros host Seattle again Wednesday night, with Lance McCullers Jr. taking the ball. McCullers has been dealing with a fingernail injury that forced him from his last start after 2⅔ innings.
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