The Houston Astros are mired in a brutal slump. Entering Wednesday’s series finale against the Detroit Tigers, Houston had been shutout in three straight games. And the team has been held scoreless in four of the last five contests. On Wednesday the Astros faced Charlie Morton. The Tigers starter kept Houston off the scoreboard through the first three frames, extending the scoreless streak to 31 innings.

Finally, Mauricio Dubón ended the Astros’ drought with a two-run home run in the fourth inning, per the Houston Chronicle’s Matt Kawahara. Although, by the time Houston’s second baseman broke the scoreless streak, the Astros were already down seven runs.

Despite finally allowing a run, Detroit completed the series sweep with a 7-2 win Wednesday. Houston has now lost four straight games and is just 2-6 over its last eight games. The Astros were outscored 23-0 over their three-game scoreless streak and 30-0 after three innings Wednesday. The team has been pummeled 56-12 over its eight-game slump since August 12.

Astros avoid fourth straight shutout in fourth straight loss

Jun 17, 2025; West Sacramento, California, USA; Houston Astros second baseman Mauricio Dubón (14) bats during the game against the Athletics at Sutter Health Park.
Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

The Astros’ ugly skid overshadowed a matchup between Cy Young frontrunners Tarik Skubal and Hunter Brown on Tuesday. Brown was excellent, allowing five hits and three walks with six strikeouts in six scoreless frames. However, Skubal topped him, giving up just three hits and two walks while striking out 10 in seven shutout innings.

The game remained scoreless after nine innings as both teams’ bullpens held up their end. But the Astros’ once again were unable to do anything offensively and the Tigers went on to win 1-0 on a walk-off walk in the bottom of the 10th.

It was the closest Houston came to a victory during its four-game slide. The team lost 12-0 to the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday and got blown out 10-0 in the series opener against Detroit. During the eight-game skid, the Astros also suffered a 7-0 loss to Baltimore and a 14-1 defeat to the Boston Red Sox.

While Houston has gone just 13-17 since the All-Star break, the team has managed to maintain a lead in the AL West. Despite loading up at the trade deadline for a second-half division title push, the Seattle Mariners have also struggled. Unable to take advantage of the Astros’ issues, the Mariners opened play on Wednesday 1.5 games behind Houston.