ASTROS FALL IN EXTRAS
Astros can't quite close the door in Seattle
Jul 20, 2025, 3:31 am
ASTROS FALL IN EXTRAS
Rookie second baseman Cole Young hit a walk-off single in the 11th inning to give the Seattle Mariners a 7-6 victory over the Houston Astros on Saturday night.
Young — who also delivered a game-ending fielder’s choice in the 11th inning of his major league debut — provided some more late-night theatrics in the Emerald City. Just a couple weeks shy of his 22nd birthday, Young went below the zone to drive a splitter from reliever Hector Neris (3-2) into right field, scoring automatic runner Dominic Canzone from third base.
Though the Mariners jumped out to a 4-1 lead after just three innings, their advantage disappeared once Seattle reliever Carlos Vargas lost control of his sinker in the sixth.
He plunked two batters, first Brice Matthews and then Zack Short, which led to warnings being issued to both benches. Jose Altuve, Victor Caratini and Christian Walker all added RBI singles shortly afterward to put the Astros up 5-4.
The Mariners evened it in the eighth thanks to a fortuitous bounce. Astros reliever Bryan Abreu spiked a slider, allowing Randy Arozarena to score with ease from third base on the wild pitch and ultimately force extra innings.
The teams traded runs in the 10th before Eduard Bazardo (4-0) tossed a scoreless inning to set the stage for Young.
Ahead of Young’s game-winning single, Miles Mastrobuoni laid down a terrific sacrifice bunt to advance Canzone to third. Mastrobuoni and teammate Jorge Polanco both executed textbook sacrifice bunts in extra innings.
Young is the first Mariners player 21 or younger with a walk-off hit since Alex Rodriguez on March 31, 1996, against the Chicago White Sox.
Astros right-hander Hunter Brown (9-4, 2.43 ERA) starts Sunday against right-hander Bryan Woo (8-4, 2.75) in the finale of the three-game set.
Oswald Peraza hit a two-run single in the ninth inning to help the Los Angeles Angels snap a three-game losing skid by beating the Houston Astros 4-1 on Saturday night.
Peraza entered the game as a defensive replacement in the seventh inning and hit a bases-loaded fly ball to deep right field that eluded the outstretched glove of Cam Smith. It was the fourth straight hit off Astros closer Bryan Abreu (3-4), who had not allowed a run in his previous 12 appearances.
The Angels third run of the ninth inning scored when Mike Trout walked with the bases loaded.
Kyle Hendricks allowed one run while scattering seven hits over six innings. He held the Astros to 1 for 8 with runners in scoring position, the one hit coming on Jesús Sánchez’s third-inning infield single that scored Jeremy Peña.
Reid Detmers worked around a leadoff walk to keep the Astros scoreless in the seventh, and José Fermin (3-2) retired the side in order in the eighth before Kenley Jansen worked a scoreless ninth to earn his 24th save.
Houston’s Spencer Arrighetti struck out a season-high eight batters over 6 1/3 innings. The only hit he allowed was Zach Neto’s third-inning solo home run.
Yordan Alvarez had two hits for the Astros, who remained three games ahead of Seattle for first place in the AL West.
Peraza’s two-run single to deep right field that broke a 1-1 tie in the ninth.
Opponents were 5 for 44 against Abreu in August before he allowed four straight hits in the ninth.
Astros RHP Hunter Brown (10-6, 2.37 ERA) faces RHP José Soriano (9-9, 3.85) when the series continues Sunday.