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Ensberg's walk-off single sends Astros to win

Apr 17, 2007 - 5:19 AM HOUSTON (Ticker) -- The Houston Astros used some patience and a little luck to pull out their first win in a one-run game.

Morgan Ensberg hit a walk-off single as the Houston Astros downed the Florida Marlins, 4-3, to win the first of a two-game series.

Tied, 3-3 in the ninth, Marlins reliever Kevin Gregg walked Mark Loretta and Lance Berkman - two of the 10 free passes Florida issued - before yielding a single by Carlos Lee to right to load the bases.

"It was unacceptable to walk those two guys," Gregg said. "That's just not going to get the job done."

With no outs in the ninth, Florida dropped what would have been an out on a foul ball from Ensberg. As Dan Uggla settled under the pop-up, right fielder Joe Borchard bumped into him from behind, knocking the ball loose.

"They were both trying to catch the ball and get the out," Gregg said. "You can't blame them for what happened. They were playing hard. They did their job."

"We've got one out (if it's caught)," Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "We still have to play the infield in and then we have to face (Luke) Scott and a pinch hitter. We would have liked to have gotten the out, but I don't think it was the ballgame."

Ensberg followed with a single on the next pitch to score Loretta for the victory.

"I was thinking (thank you) for allowing me an additional mulligan after I'd fouled off three pitches already," Ensberg said. "You absolutely want to be in that situation. That's one of the major reasons you play the game. I felt so fortunate I got the second chance and did something positive. It was a fun, fun at-bat and a great moment."

"Ensberg did a good job of fighting off pitches," Gregg said. "I was hoping to get a ground ball that we could do something with, but it just got through."

Houston reliever Chad Qualls (2-1) pitched 1 2/3 perfect innings to secure the win, striking out three.

"I hadn't thrown the ball in awhile," Qualls said. "We've had a few rainouts and some bad weather. It was nice to get out there and be able to throw again."

Gregg (0-1) did not record an out, allowing the winning run with two walks and two hits.