This was the way the Astros’ front office drew it up.
A shutdown start giving the Astros a lead through six innings. Then Bryan Abreu, Ryan Pressly, and Josh Hader to seal the lead and lock it down.
Starter Hunter Brown did his part. After a rocky first inning — of course — where he allowed one run and was let off the hook by an egregious running error by Julio Rodriguez, Brown shut down the Mariners for the next five innings, allowing only four hits, no walks, and nine Ks total.
Brown pitched like a master, mixing five pitches for strikes, hitting his spots, and keeping the Mariners off-balance.