Moehler’s complete game leads Astros past Pirates

PITTSBURGH — Brian Moehler pitched his first complete game in nearly nine years and rookie Edwin Maysonet homered while going 4 for 4 and driving in four runs, helping the Houston Astros end a seven-game losing streak with a 6-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday night.

Moehler, who had a 27.00 ERA in his two most recent starts in PNC Park, was two outs away from his first shutout in almost 10 years, or since Aug. 30, 1999, until the Pirates scored on Jason Jaromillo’s run-scoring grounder in the ninth. Moehler’s last previous complete game, while with the Tigers, was Aug. 8, 2000, against the Orioles.

Maysonet, making his third career start, doubled and scored the game’s first run in the second inning before hitting a two-run home run into the left-field seats in the fourth. He added a two-run double in a sixth inning in which four of the first five Houston batters reached, only to have two thrown out running the bases.

The Astros’ base running was bad the entire game — they had four runners thrown out — but Maysonet and Moehler were nearly enough to beat the Pirates by themselves.

Maysonet was recalled a week ago and his only two previous hits in 10 at-bats this season came during his first career start Tuesday against the Reds, when he went 2 for 4.

Moehler (2-3), a 7-0 loser to the Pirates on April 13, had lasted longer than five innings only once in six starts this season, but didn’t allow a runner to reach third until Freddy Sanchez doubled with two out in the eighth.

Moehler gave up seven hits, struck out four and walked two in following up a 6-3 loss to Texas on Saturday in which he allowed three home runs.

Pirates starter Ross Ohlendorf (5-5) needed 32 pitches to get out of a bases-loaded jam in the first without permitting any runs, but the long inning might have worn him down. An inning later, Michael Bourn’s single drove in Maysonet as the Pirates inexplicably allowed the runner to cross the plate as Bourn was caught in a rundown, and Maysonet followed Ivan Rodriguez’s single in the fourth with his first career homer.

Ohlendorf, 0-4 in six career appearances against the Astros, gave up four runs and eight hits in five-plus innings.

The Astros averaged only three runs during their losing streak, but they had 15 hits off four Pirates pitchers.