Peter Lambert’s return to form big for Houston Astros, but struggling offense remains a concern

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – On a staff with a reigning Cy Young finalist and a $95 million closer, no pitcher has been more durable for the Houston Astros this season than Peter Lambert. The right-hander has logged over 50 more innings than any other pitcher for a team that leads the American League West despite not making his season debut until mid-April.

At times in August, it appeared that workload might be taking a toll. In six starts last month, Lambert did not complete six innings once. The stretch included an outing in which the Angels tagged him for nine runs and ended with a start in which he issued a season-high five walks to the White Sox, deviating from the pitcher who buoyed Houston’s rotation in the first half by working deep into games.

Lambert’s past two starts have closer resembled that form, a welcome sight for an Astros team still vying for a playoff spot. After throwing seven innings against Arizona last week, Lambert worked into the seventh Saturday against the American League-leading Rays, allowing three runs, one of which scored after he had departed, in a 3-2 loss for Houston.

“It’s like he got a second (wind),” manager Joe Espada said. “That’s a good lineup and he was able to give us six strong innings.”

The loss, in which the Astros’ lineup totaled five hits, left them clinging to a two-game AL West lead over the Rangers. An offense that has scored three or fewer runs in 21 of 36 games is a concern. The prospect of Lambert regaining his stride for the season’s final weeks and a potential playoff push, still, is a positive development for a staff that has performed better of late.

Astros pitchers have posted a 3.06 ERA over their past 16 games. Their starters have a 2.84 ERA over that stretch, in which Houston is 9-7, a mark reflecting mediocre run support.

For the season, the Astros entered Saturday with the majors’ seventh-highest team ERA and third-worst rotation ERA. Lambert served as ballast to both for months while building toward the highest workload of his career. Saturday’s outing left him at 160 ⅓ innings between the majors and Triple-A, surpassing a previous high of 149 ⅓ innings logged in 2019 in the Rockies’ system.

In his last start in August, Lambert threw 104 pitches in 4 ⅔ innings against Chicago. In two starts since, he has not walked a batter, which he cited as a conscious effort.

“Especially at this point in the year, just the free passes come around to hurt you a little bit more, so it’s been a main focus of mine,” Lambert said.

Avoiding walks has helped Lambert be more efficient. He completed seven innings on 98 pitches, giving up three runs, in his start against Arizona. Saturday, he navigated his first six innings against the Rays on 76 pitches, regularly getting ahead of hitters and inducing ineffective contact. Overall, he threw 62 of 85 pitches for strikes, a 73% strike percentage.

2026 ASTROS STATS

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At his best this season, Lambert’s varied arsenal has allowed him to attack lineups in different ways and avoid hard contact even when in the strike zone. He awoke Saturday in the 76th percentile of pitchers at suppressing hard-hit rate, per Baseball Savant. His hard-rate allowed in August was actually his lowest in a month this season, but he also walked 17 batters in 29 2/3 innings.

Saturday, he did not reach a three-ball count until the last of his 22 batters faced. After a two-out single by Junior Caminero in the first inning, Lambert retired his next 10 hitters in a row. Victor Mesa Jr. singled in an eight-pitch at-bat to begin the fifth, Chandler Simpson singled and both scored as Richie Palacios lined a high fastball into center field for a one-out single.

“That’s where we were trying to go with it, he just beat us,” Lambert said of the pitch to Palacios. “He put a pretty good swing on it, so hats off to him.”

Overall, the Rays, who do not rely on high exit velocities to fuel their offense, averaged an 85 mph mark on 18 balls put in play against Lambert. They whiffed on just six of 51 swings and fouled off a whopping 27 of his pitches, but Lambert still managed to be efficient. His 76th pitch of the night induced a double-play grounder from Caminero to end the sixth, eliciting a burst of emotion from the right-hander.

It preserved a 2-2 game at that point. With a run of five left-handed hitters in the Rays lineup looming, the Astros warmed Bennett Sousa during the top of the seventh. But Lambert returned to the mound to begin the bottom of the inning. Liam Hicks engaged a nine-pitch at-bat and lined a double that chased Lambert from the game. A sacrifice fly against Sousa scored the runner he bequeathed.

“Every time he goes out there, we always have a chance to win a game,” Espada said.

Each the last two have resulted in 3-2 losses, underscoring the Astros’ need for more consistent offense. Harnessing some could help a pitcher who again looks poised to help their precarious playoff push.

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This article originally published at Peter Lambert’s return to form big for Houston Astros, but struggling offense remains a concern.