The Houston Astros were defeated by the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday afternoon at Minute Maid Park, 5-3. As a result of the loss, the Astros dropped their three-game weekend series to the Reds.
Bud Norris pitched very well for Houston, as he tossed six scoreless innings, allowing just three hits and a walk while racking up six strikeouts. Unfortunately, the Astros' bullpen was unable to preserve the lead that Norris and the Houston offense built, as they allowed five runs in the top of the eighth inning and sent their club spiraling toward their 93rd loss of 2012.
The Astros got on the board first, scoring a run on Brian Bogusevic's force out in the fifth inning. They tacked on more in the seventh, as Fernando Martinez tripled in Jason Castro to give the Astros a 2-0 lead. Martinez inexplicably got picked off at third base, which was unfortunate because Tyler Greene homered during the same at-bat, giving Houston a 3-0 lead that should have been 4-0.
Hector Ambriz came on in the top of the eighth, and allowed two baserunners before giving way to Xavier Cedeno, who immediately served up a three-run home run to Jay Bruce which tied the game. After giving up a single to Todd Frazier, Cedeno exited in favor of Wilton Lopez, who allowed back-to-back doubles to Chris Heisey and Miguel Cairo, giving the Reds a two-run cushion that they wouldn't relinquish.
Tyler Greene was Houston's top performer on offense, as he went 2-for-3 with a homer. Brandon Phillips and Xavier Paul had two hits apiece for Cincinnati.
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