Watch: Royals knock Astros starter for nine runs, 11 hits in wild first inning
The Astros should bring back their trash cans so we can throw them in it.
Houston's rough start to the 2024 season continued on Thursday with a horrific outing against the Kansas City Royals by starting pitcher Hunter Brown, who allowed nine runs on 11 hits in just 2/3 of an inning pitched.
In his earlier two starts this season, Brown had pitched four shutout innings against the New York Yankees on March 30 before subsequently allowing five runs in three innings his last time on the mound against the Texas Rangers.
On Thursday afternoon, Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. recorded two hits in the monster inning, including a two-run blast to cap the scoring.
Per Baseball Reference, Brown is the first starting pitcher in league history to allow at least 11 hits and nine runs in less than one inning. Former Reds starting pitcher Bronson Arroyo allowed 10 runs and 11 hits while completing a full inning against the Blue Jays on June 24, 2008.
Houston entered Thursday's game with a 4-9 record, its worst through 13 games since 2013, when the club finished the year 51-111.
The Astros have been the AL's most successful franchise since 2017, the season they won the first World Series in franchise history.
The team's sign-stealing scandal, which involved players banging trash cans to assist batters at the plate, marred its accomplishments to many, but Houston's prolonged success – seven consecutive ALCS appearances – have shown the Astros have been good enough on their own.
However, the Astros' past dominance won't save them this year. Pitching has been a concern through the first two weeks of the season, first with the relief staff blowing games and recently with starters putting the team in a hole.
Per FanGraphs, Houston has the league's 11th-worst earned run average (ERA) as a team (4.42). Entering Thursday, the Astros ranked 12th in starter ERA (3.86) and 24th in relief pitcher ERA (5.18).
Houston's bullpen has already lost six games, the most in the league. It likely won't add another loss to its resume on Thursday, but only because Brown was bad enough on his own.
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