Diamondbacks 1, Astros 4

The Diamondbacks actually got on the board first, as Welington Castillo and Jake Lamb hit back-to-back doubles in the second inning, for a 1-0 lead. However, Lamb got himself picked off, and that was the effective end of our offense for the afternoon. It was a particularly brutal afternoon for the top of our order, with Ender Inciarte, Yasmany Tomas and Paul Goldschmidt going a combined 0-for-12 with five strikeouts. The bottom of the order did better, with two-hit games for Castillo, Lamb and Nick Ahmed, and Cliff Pennington reaching base twice on a hit and a walk, but we badly lacked in the clutch department, even as we outhit Houston 9-8.

It wasn't one of Robbie Ray's better outings. He labored through five innings, taking 103 pitches and scattering seven hits and three walks, with five strikeouts. Houston managed just the one home-run, but the big blow was likely a two-run single with the bases loaded in the bottom of the fourth, which broke a 1-1 tie. Good work out of the bullpen by Andrew Chafin, David Hernandez and Oliver Perez, who combined for three shutout frames, on a hit and a walk with six strikeouts.The Diamondbacks now head for Washington, where we trust the park will be 1:1 sale.

Mr Butterworth was a late sign-up for the guest recap, so we'll see in a bit whether that turns up!