Astros get big hits from Walker and Paredes to top Padres
ASTROS DEFEAT PADRES
20 April
The Astros beat the Padres, 3-2. Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images.
Isaac Paredes hit a tiebreaking RBI single in the seventh inning after Christian Walker's two-run homer in the sixth tied it up, leading the Houston Astros to a 3-2 win over the San Diego Padres on Saturday night.
WALKER LASER. TIE GAME.#BuiltForThis pic.twitter.com/wvhvQ7EKIi
— Houston Astros (@astros) April 20, 2025
Paredes hit a bloop single to short center field with two outs off San Diego’s Jeremiah Estrada (0-1), who had allowed two hits in 10 1/3 innings before Saturday.
Walker, who was moved out of the cleanup spot for the first time after batting .159 through the first 19 games, homered on a 1-0 sweeper from Michael King with two outs, his second of the season.
Bryan Abreu worked a scoreless eighth inning and Josh Hader, on his bobblehead giveaway night, pitched a scoreless ninth and got former Padres teammate Yuli Gurriel to fly out to end the game. Tayler Scott (1-1) worked two innings of relief and earned the win.
Fernando Tatis Jr. hit his seventh homer of the season in the third inning. Manny Machado helped add to an early lead when he followed a Tatis single and stolen base with an RBI double in the fifth inning for the Padres, who lost back-to-back games for the second time this season.
Outfielder Tirso Ornelas, who signed with the Padres in 2016, made his major league debut. The 25-year-old Ornelas was called up from Triple-A El Paso where he was hitting .281. His journey to Houston was almost as trying as his climb to the big leagues. He had two flights canceled, delaying his arrival, and was inserted as a pinch hitter in the seventh inning and flied out.
Key Moment
Paredes’ RBI single in the seventh, which gave Houston the lead.
Key stat
Houston has consecutive wins for the first time this season after beating the Padres 6-4 on Friday.
Up next
Houston LHP Framber Valdez (1-2, 4.50 ERA) opposes RHP Dylan Cease (1-1, 6.64 ERA) in the series finale on Sunday.
Astros offense flickered — and then the Rays took over
May 31, 2025, 7:02 pm
Junior Caminero hit two of Tampa Bay’s season-high five home runs and Zack Littell threw his first career complete game as the Rays sailed to a 16-3 victory over the Houston Astros Saturday.
Littell (5-5) allowed 10 hits and three runs with six strikeouts. The Rays have won each of Littell’s last seven starts and he’s 5-0 in that stretch.
The 21-year-old Caminero had a career-best four hits and drove in five runs. The performance comes after he set a career high with six RBIs on Thursday in a 13-3 victory.
Yandy Díaz, Jake Mangum and Josh Lowe also homered for the Rays, who had a season-best 18 hits and whose 16 runs tied a season high.
Díaz had a two-run shot in the third and Caminero put the Rays in front 4-3 with his solo homer to the seats in left field to start the fourth.
Tampa Bay led by 2 when Brandon Lowe extended his hitting streak to a career-long 13 games with an RBI double with one out in the sixth. Caminero followed with double to make it 7-3.
Mangum, a rookie who came off the injured list Friday, smacked a ball to the bullpen in right-center for his first career homer to push the lead to 9-3 and a two-run shot by Josh Lowe left Tampa Bay up 11-3.
There were two on with one out in the eighth when Caminero went deep again to make it 14-3 and give him his first career multi-homer game.
La Tormenta strikes early.#BuiltForThis pic.twitter.com/E497cfEkbO
— Houston Astros (@astros) May 31, 2025
Jeremy Peña homered twice for the Astros, who fell to 1-2 in this four-game series.
HE'S FEELIN' IT!#BuiltForThis pic.twitter.com/IolXlk8nPw
— Houston Astros (@astros) May 31, 2025
Houston starter Colton Gordon (0-1) allowed five hits and four runs in five innings.
Key moment
Tampa Bay’s six-run seventh inning made it 11-3.
Key stat
Tampa Bay allowed four or fewer runs for the 12th straight game, which is the team’s longest streak since a 16-game stretch to end the 2021 season.
Up next
Tampa Bay’s Taj Bradley (4-4, 4.38 ERA) opposes RHP Hunter Brown (7-3, 2.00) when the series concludes Sunday.
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