The Astros were one win away from making their third straight World Series last season.
Now, they sit in last place in the American League West.
Houston has suffered from some abysmal starting pitching performances in recent games, and Thursday afternoon was no exception.
Hunter Brown got the start for the Astros, and the team hoped he’d end a string of recent rough starts, but the righty turned Houston’s starts from bad to worse.
Brown was unable to get out of the first inning, allowing nine runs on 11 hits, including a two-run home run from Royals’ star Bobby Witt Jr, as he recorded just two outs before exiting as Kansas City swept Houston in a 13-3 rout.
The start was Brown’s third of the season and second in which he allowed five or more runs.
After a scoreless four innings in the Astros’ opening series against the Yankees, Brown pitched against the rival Rangers, allowing five runs on eight hits, lasting just three innings.
Brown has now allowed 14 earned runs on 25 hits on the season, and his ERA is 16.43.
He was once the Astros’ top prospect, and MLB Network even compared him to Justin Verlander in 2022.
But after these past two awful starts, though, he’ll need to regroup.
This is the second series in which the Astros have been swept, and the latest loss drops them to 4-10.
Houston sits 1 1/2 games behind the Athletics and Mariners and in last place in the AL West.
They begin a three-game series at home against the defending World Series-champion Rangers, and if they continue the slide, alarm bells could be ringing in Houston.
