TWINS DEFEAT ASTROS
Astros' offense falls flat in loss to Twins
May 31, 2024, 10:35 pm
Twins defeat Astros, 6-1. Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images.
Pablo López pitched seven strong innings and Trevor Larnach hit a two-run homer to lead the Minnesota Twins to a 6-1 win over the Houston Astros on Friday night.
Carlos Santana added a solo home run and Willi Castro tripled to help the Twins to their fourth victory in five games.
López (5-5) allowed six hits and a run with six strikeouts as he tied his longest start of the season.
Alex Bregman went deep in the third inning for his third home run in four games, but the Astros couldn’t do much else on offense in their fourth loss in five games.
Castro’s triple opened the third before Jose Miranda walked. There was one out in the inning when Carlos Correa’s double to right field scored Castro to make it 1-0. Miranda scored on a sacrifice fly by Alex Kirilloff to leave Minnesota up 2-0.
Bregman cut the lead to 1 when he sent Lopez’s first pitch of the fourth inning off the foul pole in left field.
Castro walked with no outs in the fifth before Larnach made it 4-1 with his shot to left-center field off Ronel Blanco (5-1) with one out.
Max Kepler was hit by a pitch to start the sixth and moved to third on a double by Ryan Jeffers. Kepler scored on a groundout by Manuel Margot to extend the lead to 5-1.
Santana’s home run off Alex Speas made it 6-1 in the eighth.
Blanco, who threw a no-hitter in his season debut, allowed three hits and four runs while walking three in 4 2/3 innings for his first loss.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Twins: 3B Royce Lewis (severe quadriceps strain) went 0 for 4 with three strikeouts in his fifth rehabilitation start for Triple-A St. Paul on Friday. Manager Rocco Baldelli wouldn’t say when he expected him to come off the injured list, but said it wouldn’t be this weekend.
Astros: RHP Luis Garcia (Tommy John surgery) threw 20 pitches in a live batting practice session Friday. Garcia will go to Houston’s spring training facility in West Palm Beach, Florida, next week to throw a couple more live batting practice sessions before beginning a minor league rehabilitation assignment.
UP NEXT Houston LHP Framber Valdez (3-3, 4.34 ERA) opposes Joe Ryan (4-3, 2.96) when the series continues Saturday.
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The Houston Astros sent a message loud and clear with one of their most emphatic wins of the season, an 18-1 demolition of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and they did it without Yordan Alvarez or Jeremy Peña in the lineup.
Jose Altuve silenced the Dodger Stadium boos with a pair of home runs and even stayed after the game to sign autographs for young fans. Lance McCullers Jr. delivered six strong innings in a bounce-back outing, and the offense erupted behind big nights from Zach Short, Cam Smith, Yainer Díaz, and Christian Walker.
With key contributions across the board, this was a total team win, one that highlights the depth, momentum, and legitimacy of this Astros squad as the second half approaches. Manager Joe Espada is pressing all the right buttons, and with All-Star nods for Josh Hader, Hunter Brown, and Peña, Houston looks like a team no one wants to face right now.
Don't miss the video below as ESPN Houston's John Granato and Lance Zierlein react to the big series in LA, and much more!
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