Houston wins third straight
Tucker slams, Greinke deals as Astros take opener over Angels
Aug 13, 2021, 11:35 pm
Kyle Tucker's grand slam provided the Astros the runs they needed to win on Friday. Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images
Kyle Tucker's grand slam provided the Astros the runs they needed to win on Friday.
After getting the two-game sweep of the Rockies at home in the middle of the week, the Astros entered Angel Stadium as visitors on Friday after a day off looking to grab their third-straight win. Thanks to one big inning and solid pitching, they would get it.
Final Score: Astros 4, Angels 1
Astros' Record: 69-46, first in the AL West
Winning Pitcher: Zack Greinke (11-3)
Losing Pitcher: Patrick Sandoval (3-6)
Tucker's slam gets Houston on the board in a big way
King Tuck doing what he does best đź‘‘#ForTheHÂ pic.twitter.com/68kWm04e1a
— Houston Astros (@astros) August 14, 2021
After just a handful of hits and no runs by both teams through the first three innings, Houston started the scoring in the top of the fourth. It came in a big way, with two walks and a single to load the bases, bringing Kyle Tucker to the plate, who delivered a 400-foot grand slam to give the Astros a 4-0 lead.
Greinke carves up LA's lineup
That gave Zack Greinke a lead to work with, and he held the Angels off the board. He allowed two baserunners over the first three innings, a ground-rule double in the second and a single in the third. He retired the other 21 batters he faced, carving up the Angels lineup in seven scoreless innings. His final line: 7.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 7 K, 94 P.
Astros grab the opener
First out of the Astros' bullpen was Kendall Graveman, who pitched the bottom of the eighth. He got through the frame, but not before allowing LA's first run of the night, a two-out RBI single by Shohei Ohtani to make it 4-1. Ryan Pressly took over in the bottom of the ninth, tossing a 1-2-3 inning to grab the save and wrap up the win for Houston to take the opener.
Up Next: The middle game of this series will be an 8:07 PM Central start on Saturday. Luis Garcia (8-6, 3.29 ERA) will look to get his ninth win of the year for the Astros, going opposite of Jaime Barria (2-0, 4.21 ERA) for the Angels.
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Houston falls short as Soto’s homer, missed opportunities doom Astros
Mar 28, 2025, 10:26 pm
With a chance to make a late splash in his New York Mets debut, Juan Soto came up empty.
After signing the biggest contract in baseball history last offseason, the slugger came to bat with two runners aboard and the Mets down by two in the ninth inning Thursday. But instead of delivering the huge hit New York was looking for, he whiffed on a full-count slider from hard-throwing closer Josh Hader that was way outside the strike zone to send the Mets to a second straight opening day loss in Houston's 3-1 victory.
“He just got me in that situation,” Soto said.
Hader loaded the bases with nobody out, then fanned third-string catcher Hayden Senger in his first major league at-bat. Francisco Lindor’s sacrifice fly made it 3-1, and there were runners on first and third when Hader struck out Soto for his 200th career save.
“We all want to do something in a big spot,” Soto said. “We’re all trying to get the knock and try to bring the runs in and try to help the team either way.”
Soto singled and walked twice against the Astros after signing a record $765 million, 15-year contract as a free agent in December.
Mets manager Carlos Mendoza was asked if he thought Soto felt extra pressure in the ninth inning because it was his first game with a new team.
“Yeah, of course, as a competitor he always wants to come through,” Mendoza said. “I thought he had some good at-bats today and even on that one he got it 3-0 and then 3-1 and that pitch that he got there (he) just missed it. Pretty good pitch. But he’ll come through.”
Soto, who played for the American League champion New York Yankees last season, joins the Mets as they chase their first World Series title since 1986.
The four-time All-Star was disappointed his first game with the Mets didn't go their way.
“I was expecting to win the game,” he said. “Definitely it’s not how we wanted. ... They’re a really good team over there and they come in and grind. For me it was a good experience. These guys are amazing and we’ve been having a good time since spring training and we’ve just got to bring that all the way.”
The 26-year-old Soto hit .288 with 41 homers and 109 RBIs last year and won a Silver Slugger Award for a fifth straight season.
Soto is a career .285 hitter with 201 home runs and 592 RBIs in seven major league seasons. He's also played for the Nationals and Padres.
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