ALTUVE WITH TWO BOMBS
Altuve homers off Eovaldi in first 2 at-bats to lead Astros over Rangers
Apr 15, 2024, 11:27 am
Altuve is on fire! Composite Getty Image.
Jose Altuve homered off Nathan Eovaldi in his first two at-bats and Cristian Javier pitched seven strong innings to lead the Houston Astros to an 8-5 win over the Texas Rangers on Sunday.
After dropping the series opener 12-8, the Astros have won back-to-back games following a 4-11 start that left them seven games under .500 for the first time since 2016. They improved to 4-3 against AL West rival Texas this season.
Javier (2-0) allowed five hits and two runs with five strikeouts to give Houston a second straight solid pitching performance after dismal outings by its starters in the previous three games.
Marcus Semien hit a three-run homer off Seth Martinez with two outs in the ninth to cut the lead to 8-5. Josh Hader struck out Corey Seager to end it.
It was the 11th multi-homer game for Altuve, and his seven career home runs off Eovaldi are his most against any pitcher.
“He’s that kind of guy that it doesn’t matter what you do, you don’t really want to face him very often,” Altuve said. “He’s great. That’s why he’s one of the best guys out there. So today you might hit a homer but the next game he might strike you out three times. With him you never know.”
Altuve sent Eovaldi’s third pitch off the foul pole in left field for his 36th career leadoff homer, which ranks third in franchise history.
There was one out in the third when Altuve connected again, sending a fastball into the seats in left to make it 2-0. Eovaldi slumped his shoulders and shouted something as the ball sailed away. Altuve grinned as he rounded the bases and flexed both biceps as he reached the end of the dugout.
“Every time you do something to help your team, especially with the situation we were in a few days ago, it feels good,” Altuve said. “We're trying to click as a team, flip things around, start winning, and it’s always good to do stuff like that.”
Altuve also singled in his second consecutive game with three hits. He's reached base safely in all 17 games to start the season.
“It’s impressive how he’s able to get barrel to some tough pitches,” Houston manager Joe Espada said. “When the pitcher thinks that he’s executed a pitch, Altuve is getting the barrel and hitting the ball out of the ballpark, getting singles. Pretty impressive what he does.”
Eovaldi (1-1) yielded eight hits and five runs in six innings.
“Overall, I felt really good today,” he said. “I made some really good pitches and they had good at-bats and I felt like they hit tough pitches.”
Evan Carter hit a solo homer and Semien added an RBI double for the World Series champion Rangers, who have dropped three of four.
Carter got his team’s first hit with his home run to right-center with one out in the fourth that cut the lead to 2-1.
Chas McCormick and Jeremy Peña singled to start the Houston fourth before an RBI double by Victor Caratini made it 3-1. There were two outs in the inning when a double by Mauricio Dubón scored two more to extend the lead to 5-1.
Leody Taveras doubled with one out in the fifth before scoring on the double by Semien to get Texas to 5-2.
McCormick drove in two runs with a double in Houston's three-run seventh that pushed the lead to 8-2.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Rangers: Placed LHP Cody Bradford on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to Thursday, with a low back strain. RHP Cole Winn was called up from Triple-A Round Rock.
Astros: RHP Justin Verlander (right shoulder inflammation) allowed seven hits and six runs — five earned — in four innings of a rehabilitation start for Double-A Corpus Christi on Saturday night. Espada said the team will see how Verlander feels Monday before deciding the next step for the three-time Cy Young Award winner. … LHP Framber Valdez (left elbow inflammation) said he’s feeling much better and plans to start playing catch Tuesday.
UP NEXT
Rangers: Had not yet announced a starting pitcher for the opener of a four-game series Monday night at Detroit.
Astros: RHP Spencer Arrighetti (0-1, 21.00 ERA) will make his second major league start Monday night in the opener of a three-game series against Atlanta.
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Coming off a 10-win regular season and an appearance in the divisional round of the playoffs, expectations are high for the Houston Texans in 2024.
However, coach DeMeco Ryans is only concerned with what is happening inside the team.
“We have a lot of room for improvement, and my expectations and what I expect to see from everyone is just get a little better each day,” Ryans said. “If we get a little bit better each day, we'll be exactly where we want to be.”
The day before starting his second training camp as Texans head coach, Ryans told his players they should expect more from themselves than anyone else.
“Nobody on the outside is going to have a bigger expectation than on the inside of the building,” defensive end Will Anderson Jr. said. “Right now, our expectation is just building that building, building a tall building."
After combining for just 11 wins from 2020-2022, Houston surprised many to win the AFC South before beating the Cleveland Browns in the wild-card round. The Texans likely won’t catch anyone by surprise this season.
“It’s gonna be harder,” quarterback C.J. Stroud said. “We have a target on our back this year, and that’s how you should want it.”
The emergence of Stroud is a big reason why so much is expected of the Texans in 2024. The second overall pick of the 2023 draft threw for 4,108 yards and 23 touchdowns on his way to being the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year.
“C.J. has done a really good job this offseason, as a leader when it comes to working with other guys,” Ryans said. “Knowing that he’s not just working by himself, but finding the avenues to get a group together and work together. That’s very important, especially when it comes to timing in the passing game.”
The Texans added talent around Stroud over the offseason, acquiring Pro Bowl receiver Stefon Diggs from Buffalo and Pro Bowl running back Joe Mixon from Cincinnati before the draft.
Mixon will help a Texans rushing offense that averaged just 3.7 yards per carry, fifth worst in the NFL last season, while Diggs, who has finished with more than 100 catches the past four seasons, joins a passing attack that returns its five leading pass catchers.
“I’ve been watching Diggs for a while,” wide receiver Nico Collins said. “I was in middle school, and he was in Minnesota making plays, so it’s just crazy that he’s part of the squad.”
On the other side of the ball, the Texans signed four-time Pro Bowl defensive end Danielle Hunter to a two-year, $49 million contract after a 16 1/2 sack season with the Minnesota Vikings to pair with Anderson, the 2023 AP Defensive Rookie of the Year, on the defensive line.
Expectations are lofty for a team that has not advanced to a conference championship game in its 22-year history, but Stroud and his teammates aren’t shying away from those expectations.
“That’s how it should be,” Stroud said. “The person that always doubts himself probably will never make it to that point, so you gotta have confidence and have a goal and a plan and execute that plan.”