NEW YORK — Chad Qualls was faced with a near impossible task Monday night at Yankee Stadiun, when Carlos Beltran’s fly ball to center field went for a walk-off sac fly in the ninth inning. The Astros fell 1-0 despite Scott Feldman’s eight scoreless innings.
The ending was almost anti-climactic in a beautifully pitched game until the final inning, which Astrso reliever Oliver Perez began by walking the first three hitters, the middle batter intentionally.
Beltran was Qualls’ only batter. Center fielder Carlos Gomez didn’t even bother with a throw on a ball that pushed him just a few feet shy of the warning track.