ASTROS BLANK ORIOLES
Astros 5 1/2 games up in AL West after shutting out Orioles
Aug 22, 2024, 9:16 pm
Astros defeat Orioles, 6-0. Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images.
Spencer Arrighetti outpitched Corbin Burnes, Ben Gamel drove in two runs in his Houston debut and the Astros extended their lead in the AL West to a season-high 5 1/2 games with a 6-0 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday night.
Arrighetti (6-11) allowed three hits in six innings, striking out six with one walk. Burnes (12-6) permitted five earned runs in 5 2/3 innings in the second straight rough outing for the Baltimore ace. He allowed a career-high eight runs in his previous start against Boston.
Houston has won nine straight road games, its longest streak since an 11-game run in 2018.
Gamel, acquired off waivers from the New York Mets, delivered RBI singles in the fourth and sixth, when Houston did all its scoring. The Astros are 62-39 since their 7-19 start, and they've opened a comfortable lead over second-place Seattle in the AL West. Houston was 10 games behind after losing to the Chicago White Sox on June 18.
The Orioles, meanwhile, fell 1 1/2 games behind the AL East-leading New York Yankees.
Burnes allowed eight hits. They were all singles, but they were all clustered in two innings, making them extra profitable for the Astros. Yordan Alvarez and Gamel hit RBI singles in the fourth. Then Gamel drove in another run with a sixth-inning hit.
Jake Meyers' bunt single made it 4-0, and when Burnes threw wildly to first for an error on that play it left runners on second and third. Shay Whitcomb followed with a two-run single to chase the Baltimore right-hander.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Astros: Alex Bregman (elbow) was in the DH spot for a second straight game. Manager Joe Espada said putting Bregman at 1B could be a possibility at some point.
Orioles: Manager Brandon Hyde said RHP Zach Eflin (shoulder) should be ready to return when he's eligible to come off the injured list in early September.
UP NEXT
Hunter Brown (11-7) starts for Houston on Friday night against Baltimore rookie Cade Povich (1-6). Brown is 10-2 with a 2.33 ERA since the start of June.
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Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun both agreed to contract extensions with the Houston Rockets, a person with knowledge of the details said Monday.
Green, the second overall pick in the 2021 draft, agreed to a three-year, $106 million extension. Sengun, who was chosen 16th in the same draft, agreed to five-year, $185 million extension.
The person confirmed the specifics of the agreements to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the deals had not been announced. Both deals were first reported by ESPN.
Both players are entering the final seasons of their rookie contracts. Green's new deal will begin next season and includes a player option for the third year, giving him the flexibility to opt out of the contract before the 2027-28 season to become a free agent.
Sengun's extension also begins next season and includes a player option for the fifth season in 2029-30.
Green played in all 82 games last season and averaged 19.6 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists to help the Rockets make a 19-game improvement from the previous season. He has made 545 3-pointers after making a career-high 201 last season.
The 22-year-old Green was drafted at 19 after spending one season with the G League Ignite.
He averaged 17.3 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists as a rookie. Green averaged a career-best 22.1 points in his second NBA season in 2022-23.
Sengun had a breakout year last season when he averaged 21.1 points, 9.3 rebounds and five assists — all career highs — in 63 games. He missed the last part of the season with a severely sprained ankle.
The Turkish center averaged 14.8 points and nine assists in the 2022-23 season after averaging just 9.6 points and 5.5 rebounds as a rookie.