ASTROS CLOBBER D-BACKS

Altuve and Peña homer in Astros’ 11-5 win over scuffling Diamondbacks

Altuve and Peña homer in Astros’ 11-5 win over scuffling Diamondbacks
Astros defeat the Diamondbacks, 11-5. Photo by Jack Gorman/Getty Images.

Jose Altuve and Jeremy Peña homered as the Houston Astros improved to 7-0 in games started by Yusei Kikuchi by beating the scuffling Arizona Diamondbacks 11-5 on Saturday.

Altuve had three hits and scored three times. Peña’s 15th homer was a three-run shot, capping a five-run sixth inning that started with the Astros clinging to a one-run lead.

Houston entered with a 4 1/2-game lead in the AL West over Seattle.

Arizona, which has dropped three straight and seven of 10, began the day leading the Braves and Mets by 1 1/2 games for the second National League wild card.

Kikuchi (8-9) allowed four runs and seven hits over six innings. He struck out six, giving him a career-high 183 strikeouts this season.

The left-hander has a 3.07 ERA since joining the Astros in a trade from the Toronto Blue Jays on July 29, with a 32.1% strikeout rate.

Kevin Newman homered off Kikuchi in the fourth to put Arizona up 3-1, but Houston rallied for four runs against Eduardo Rodriguez in the bottom half.

Rodriguez (2-2) faced 10 batters and needed 47 pitches to get through the inning. Houston loaded the bases without a hit, and Chas McCormick tied the game with a two-run single. Yordan Alvarez’s two-out RBI single put the Astros on top and, after an error, Alex Bregman capped the flurry with a bases-loaded walk.

Alvarez finished with three hits and is batting .410 with 13 RBIs over his last 10 games.

Eugenio Suárez hit his 25th homer in the sixth to bring Arizona within a run, but the Astros broke open the game with the help of Peña’s three-run drive into the Astros’ bullpen in right-center field.

Dylan Floro was charged with all five Houston runs in the sixth.

Rodriguez gave up five runs, four earned, and seven hits over four innings with one strikeout.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Diamondbacks: C José Herrera returned to the lineup after he was removed from Friday’s game when he was hit on the back of the helmet by Kyle Tucker’s follow-through on a strikeout.

Astros: After returning from a 79-game absence Friday due to a fractured right shin, RF Kyle Tucker did not start but was available off the bench. ... INF Mauricio Dubón is dealing with a sore left thumb, which forced him out of Friday’s game after he jammed it diving into first base.

UP NEXT

Houston RHP Justin Verlander (3-5, 4.52 ERA) opposes RHP Ryne Nelson (10-6, 4.15) when the series concludes Sunday night.

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Houston will have to lean on Altuve and Paredes with Peña on the IL. Composite Getty Image.

Fresh off their 50th win of the season, the Houston Astros begin a three-game series in Colorado on Tuesday night, looking to stay hot against a Rockies team still searching for answers.

Houston enters the matchup atop the AL West with a 50–34 record, having won seven of its last 10 games. Though the Astros haven’t been as sharp on the road — just 18–20 away from home — their pitching and power-hitting combo continues to give opponents fits. Isaac Paredes leads the team with 17 home runs, and when Houston clears the fences multiple times in a game, the results speak for themselves: an 18–5 record when hitting two or more homers.

Victor Caratini has quietly chipped in during this recent stretch, going 8-for-33 with three home runs and eight RBIs over the last 10 games, helping make up for some offensive inconsistency. Houston’s team batting average over that span sits at just .225.

Left-hander Colton Gordon takes the mound Tuesday, carrying a 3-1 record and 3.98 ERA into his ninth start of the year. He’ll face a Colorado offense that’s scuffled all season, particularly at home. The Rockies have managed just eight wins in 40 games at Coors Field and are riding a 2–8 skid. Rookie righty Chase Dollander (2-8, 6.06 ERA) gets the start for Colorado as he looks to slow down a Houston team that has found different ways to win.

While Hunter Goodman and Mickey Moniak have provided some spark for the Rockies at the plate, the team has been outscored by 26 runs over the past 10 games and owns one of the league’s worst pitching staffs, a troubling combo against an Astros club that doesn’t need many openings to take control.

This will be the first meeting between the two teams this season. For Houston, it’s a chance to keep momentum rolling against the team with MLB’s worst record. For Colorado, it’s another test in a season full of them.

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Astros -173, Rockies +144; over/under is 11 1/2 runs

Astros news

Shay Whitcomb has been recalled from Sugar Land to take Pena's place on the roster.

Here's a preview of the Astros lineup for Game 1.

So what stands out? With Peña unavailable, manager Joe Espada is once again using Paredes to leadoff, followed by Jake Meyers in the two-spot. Caratini is hitting fifth and will serve as the DH. He's followed by Yainer Diaz and Christian Walker. Cooper Hummel will hit eighth and play left field, as Jose Altuve is playing second base. Mauricio Dubon will hit ninth and fill in for Peña at shortstop.


Image via: MLB.com/Screenshot.

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