Astros back in win column thanks to McCullers rebound

Heading into tonight's series opener, Lance McCullers Jr. had mentioned cleaning up his tendencies with runners on base, a problem he faced constantly in his disastrous last start in Arizona. Whether that indirectly pointed toward him tipping his pitches or other fundamental issues, no one knew, but the hope was that McCullers would simply be able to get himself -- and the team -- back on track.

Whatever he fixed obviously worked as McCullers shoved on the mound, leading the Astros to a 6-4 victory over San Francisco on Monday night.

McCullers got off to a fast start and never looked back. He retired 12 of his first 13 batters faced, utilizing a solid mix up of his fastball, curveball and changeup. The only runner he allowed on base through four innings was a hit by pitch.

McCullers flirted with a potential no-hitter heading into the sixth inning, recording five strikeouts up to that point. An unfortunate Donovan Solano double that barely dribbled by Alex Bregman would end the bid, but McCullers would continue his tear through the sixth and seventh on his exceptional start.

Back in the friendly confines of home, the Astros offense would manage to provide effective run support for McCullers, striking early in the second inning with a Carlos Correa single that scored Yuli Gurriel from first.

The bottom of the third would prove even more fruitful for the Astros, as a single and an error would allow Astros to reach first and second with one out. A walk to Alec Bregman would load the bases for Michael Brantley, who would drive in two with a ground-rule double that hopped over the left field wall.

Two more runs would cross for the Astros in the inning, capping off a four-run third inning that put the Astros up five.

Martín Maldonado would add to the lead with his own solo shot in the sixth inning, his first of the year.

As Astros games have gone so far this season, the game wasn't without a bit of stress. Josh James, who came on in relief for McCullers in the eighth inning, allowed a solo home run to Austin Slater to cut the deficit to five. He'd allow the first three runners to reach in the ninth, making the score 6-2 with runners on second and third with no outs.

James was pulled in favor for Ryan Pressly, a disappointing development for a team hoping to save its better bullpen arms for closer games. James would allow two more runs to score as well as allow the tying run to come to the plate, but he would force an Evan Longoria flyout to end the game.

With the win, Houston snaps a five-game losing streak and improves to 7-9. McCullers moved to 2-1 on the season with his great performance (7 IP, one hit, no walks, five strikeouts). The Astros will aim for two in a row with Brandon Bielak on the mound for the 'Stros tomorrow evening.