McCullers' start Friday began to unravel in the fifth inning when he was facing San Diego hitters for a third time through the lineup, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.
Not all of McCullers' problems occurred the third time through the order -- runners reached base in each of the first four innings -- but it only cost him when batters got a third look at the curveball master, as he gave up four hits and only retired one hitter who saw him for a third time. That comes on the heels of his previous start against the Rangers, when two of the three batters seeing him a third time reached base safely via a hit. Going back to 2017, 118 opponents seeing McCullers a third time slugged .567 with a 1.000 OPS. The takeaway is that McCullers will be susceptible in games where Houston's offense doesn't give him a lead. That could mean a higher ERA, a higher WHIP and lost opportunities to win.