Houston gets the win in Seattle

Astros use timely offense to take opener from Mariners

Astros' Jose Altuve
Houston's offense plated some timely runs late in Monday's game to beat the Mariners. Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images.

Houston's offense plated some timely runs late in Monday's game to beat the Mariners.

After taking two of three in Arlington against the Rangers, the Astros started the second of this three-leg road trip with an opener against the Mariners in Seattle on Monday night. They would grab and hold on to a late one-run lead, taking the first of the three-game set.

Final Score: Astros 4, Mariners 3

Astros' Record: 78-53, first in the AL West

Winning Pitcher: Phil Maton (4-0)

Losing Pitcher: Joe Smith (2-3)

Houston scores first, Mariners respond

Things looked up for the Astros in the top of the first inning, as they would seven batters to the plate, scoring the game's first two runs. The first came on an RBI single by Yordan Alvarez, followed later by a sac fly by Kyle Tucker, putting Houston on top 2-0 before the Mariners had a chance to get to the plate themselves.

The offensive momentum shifted Seattle's way after that, as they would cut the lead in half against Luis Garcia with a solo homer in the second. Garcia did well otherwise, dealing with some traffic but holding the one-run lead through his first five innings. He returned in the top of the sixth, but after a leadoff walk followed by a single, he would not get an out in the inning before being removed. Brooks Raley came in to try and strand the inherited runners, but after a double play would allow a go-ahead two-run homer, finalizing Garcia's line: 5.0 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, 1 HR, 78 P.

Astros go back in front in the eighth

Raley would finish the sixth, then Phil Maton would come in as Houston's next reliever in the bottom of the seventh. He kept it a one-run game, working around a two-out walk and error to send the 3-2 game to the top of the eighth. That inning, the Astros would score their first runs since the top of the first, getting a leadoff single by Yuli Gurriel, who scored on a Kyle Tucker RBI single, his second RBI of the game. Tucker would also come in to score, putting Houston back in front on a go-ahead single by Jake Meyers to make it a 4-3 lead.

Astros take the opener

Ryne Stanek would take over on the mound in the bottom of the eighth for the Astros, tossing a 1-2-3 frame by striking out all three Mariners he faced. With the lead still one run in the bottom of the ninth, Houston turned to their closer Ryan Pressly. Although he struggled to find the zone early in the inning, issuing a leadoff walk, he would rebound to retire the next three batters to wrap up the win.

Up Next: The middle of this three-game set will be another 9:10 PM Central start on Tuesday. Lance McCullers Jr. (10-4, 3.32 ERA) will take the mound for the Astros, with the Mariners set to start Yusei Kikuchi (7-7, 4.33 ERA).

astrosastros scoreastros recapmlbmlb scoremlb recapsastros vs marinersmariners recapmariners scoremarinersluis garcia

Most Popular

How Astros' mistakes proved costly against Rockies

SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome

Listen Live

ESPN Houston 97.5 FM

Houston Texans trim o-line room with trade to Los Angeles

Yordan Alvarez is back! Composite Getty Image.

The Houston Astros open a three-game set Tuesday night against the struggling Colorado Rockies, with Hunter Brown set to take the mound at Daikin Park.

Houston (72-59) enters the matchup atop the AL West despite dropping six of its last 10 games, during which the offense has sputtered to a .204 average and the pitching staff has been tagged for a 5.69 ERA. The Astros will look to steady things at home, where they’ve gone 38-27 this season, and lean on Brown, who has been one of their most consistent arms. The right-hander owns a 10-5 record, a 2.36 ERA and 170 strikeouts in 2025.

Colorado (37-94) comes in losers of four straight and carrying the worst road record in baseball at 16-49. The Rockies have struggled mightily to contain the long ball, going 17-77 in games when allowing at least one home run. Starter Tanner Gordon (4-5, 7.11 ERA) will try to buck that trend in just his 10th appearance of the season.

Yordan Alvarez will make his long-awaited return to the lineup Tuesday, starting in left field for the opener against Colorado. It will be his first game action since May 2 after being sidelined with a hand injury.

Jose Altuve continues to lead the Astros’ offense with 22 home runs and a .456 slugging percentage, while Carlos Correa has been one of Houston’s most reliable bats of late, collecting 13 hits in his last 39 at-bats. On the Rockies’ side, Hunter Goodman has piled up 52 extra-base hits this season, and Brenton Doyle enters the series swinging a hot bat with 15 hits and 11 RBIs over his past 10 games.

The matchup is the fourth meeting between the two clubs this year, with Houston heavily favored to pick up another win as it looks to build momentum in the stretch run.

Betting odds

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Astros -341, Rockies +270; over/under is 8 runs

Roster moves

RHP Shawn Dubin has been claimed by the Orioles.

Starting lineup

What stands out? With Yordan back in the lineup, manager Joe Espada has decided to deploy him in the cleanup spot, leaving the Top 3 of Pena, Correa, and Altuve (DH) unchanged.

A surprising twist

However, Alvarez playing left field is not something we were expecting.

Image via: MLB.com/Screenshot.

With Yordan hitting fourth, Christian Waker slides back to the five spot, followed by Jesus Sanchez (RF), Victor Caratini (C), Mauricio Dubon (2B), and Jacob Melton (CF).

Interesting to see Yainer Diaz with the night off. He was hit in the wrist by a pitch from Craig Kimbrel on Sunday. Perhaps he needed an extra day to recover.

___________________________

*ChatGPT assisted.

Looking to get the word out about your business, products, or services? Consider advertising on SportsMap! It's a great way to get in front of Houston sports fans. Click the link below for more information!

https://houston.sportsmap.com/advertise

astroshouston astros

SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome