Astros close series with a performance worth the wait
BOMBS AWAY!
06 June
The Astros beat the Pirates, 8-2. Photo by Jack Gorman/Getty Images.
Framber Valdez pitched seven strong innings, Isaac Paredes homered twice, and the Houston Astros beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 8-2 after a lengthy rain delay on Thursday night.
THAT'S AN ALL STAR CALIBER HOMER.#BuiltForThis x https://t.co/W06pfHQMR1 pic.twitter.com/V9cLeU1WNf
— Houston Astros (@astros) June 6, 2025
Valdez (6-4) won his fifth straight decision by limiting the Pirates to two runs on five hits with three walks and a season-high 11 strikeouts after waiting out the delay that pushed the start of the game back 3 hours and 22 minutes. The left-hander is now 5-0 with a 1.72 ERA in his last six starts.
Paredes hit his 13th homer of the season leading off the fourth against Mitch Keller (1-8). His 14th, a two-run shot in the ninth, put the game away.
ISAAC MY GOODNESS! #VoteParedes x https://t.co/W06pfHQMR1 pic.twitter.com/OyjOZ1IuFu
— Houston Astros (@astros) June 6, 2025
Jeremy Peña added three hits and drove in a run for the Astros. The shortstop is batting .361 since moving to the leadoff spot on April 27.
Jake Melton, who made his major league debut last weekend against Tampa Bay, had two hits, including a two-run single against Keller in the fourth.
Keller had been pitching well despite receiving the lowest run support in the majors. The right-hander wasn't quite as crisp against the Astros, giving up six runs on eight hits in 6 1/3 innings as his ERA crept up to 4.19.
Jared Triolo had two hits and scored twice for the Pirates, who have dropped four of six.
Key moment
The Pirates were down two and had runners on the corners with two outs in the fifth when Valdez fanned Andrew McCutchen on a curveball.
Key stat
9 — the number of runs Pittsburgh has scored in Keller's last starts.
Up next
Astros: head to Cleveland for a three-game weekend series starting Friday when Colton Gordon (0-1, 5.95 ERA) faces Cleveland's Logan Allen (3-3, 4.22).
Pirates: welcome Philadelphia for a three-game set beginning Friday. Bailey Falter, who posted a 0.76 ERA across six starts in May, starts the opener for Pittsburgh.
Nick Kurtz homered in the ninth inning for the second straight day and the Athletics beat the Houston Astros 3-1 on Monday night.
Brent Rooker drew a leadoff walk against Bryan Abreu (1-3) to open the ninth and reach safely in 12 straight home games. Kurtz followed with his seventh home run of the season 447 feet over the right-field wall.
Kurtz also hit a ninth-inning homer on Sunday to rally the Athletics to a 3-2 win and a three-game sweep at Kansas City.
The Athletics have won four straight games and are now 7-4 over the last 11 after losing 20 of the previous 21.
The Astros had a five-game winning streak snapped after entering winners in 16 of their last 22.
Athletics reliever J.T. Ginn struck out the side in the eighth and Mason Miller (1-2) added two strikeouts in the ninth. Starter Mitch Spence allowed seven hits and one earned run in five innings.
Third baseman Max Muncy made a nice defensive play to end the fifth when he made a backhand stab of a grounder and sent a jump throw from foul territory to get a hustling Jose Altuve at first base.
Houston rookie Ryan Gusto struck out a season-high eight and only allowed one earned run in five innings. He started in place of RHP Lance McCullers Jr., who was placed on the IL.
Altuve homered in the first and JJ Bleday went deep to tie the score 1-1 for the Athletics in the fifth.
Key moment
The Athletics appeared to have runners on second and third with two outs in the eighth following Tyler Soderstrom’s hit. However, an official review showed Jeremy Peña tagged Soderstrom when he came off the bag.
Key stat
Abreu had a string of 16 straight scoreless outings come to an end. Abreu has only allowed runs in three of his 32 appearances.
Up next
Athletics LHP JP Sears (5-5, 5.08) is scheduled to start on Tuesday. The Astros have not named a starter.
