ASTROS DEFEAT WHITE SOX
Hunter Brown deals, Astros even series against White Sox
Jun 19, 2024, 9:50 pm
ASTROS DEFEAT WHITE SOX
Hunter Brown tossed six innings of one-run ball for his third straight win, backup catcher César Salazar had a pair of RBI singles and the Houston Astros topped the Chicago White Sox 4-1 on Wednesday night.
Jake Meyers lined a pair of doubles to end an 0-for-17 slump and scored two runs to help Houston end a two-game slide. Mauricio Dubón drove in a run with a groundout and single to extend his hitting streak to 12 games. Chas McCormick added a sac fly.
Andrew Benintendi hit a solo homer in the fourth for Chicago, ending Brown’s streak of scoreless innings at 16, a season high for an Astros pitcher.
Brown (4-5) scattered seven hits, struck out six and walked none in his sixth straight quality start. The 25-year-old right-hander, in his second season in Houston's rotation, lowered his ERA to 4.72 after a rough start.
Three relievers followed with three innings of one-hit ball. Josh Hader worked around a single in the ninth for his 10th save.
Salazar went 2 for 2 in his second game this season and first multihit game of his career. He entered in the third inning after starting catcher Victor Caratini left with discomfort in his left leg after he was thrown out at the plate.
Recalled from Triple-A Sugar Land on June 11, Salazar started the night with just three hits in 20 career at-bats in 14 contests.
White Sox starter Garrett Crochet (6-6) labored at times through six innings, allowing three runs and nine hits. The lefty struck out eight and walked one.
The Astros took a 1-0 lead in the third after loading the bases with one out. McCormick scored from third on Dubón’s groundout when Chicago got a force at second, but couldn’t complete a double-play.
Houston made it 2-0 in the fourth on Salazar’s single.
Benintendi’s homer down the line to right in the bottom half cut it to 2-1.
After Meyers doubled in the sixth, Salazar followed with a grounder up the middle to make it 3-1.
César Salazar came to work today. pic.twitter.com/FfnIM5XDwQ
— Houston Astros (@astros) June 20, 2024
Meyers scored again on McCormick’s sacrifice fly in the eighth.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Astros: OF Kyle Tucker (right shin contusion) still has not started on-field baseball activities, manager Joe Espada said. “The recovery is slow, and we all hoped it would have been faster,” Espada said. The slugger had 19 homers when he was hurt on June 3 when he fouled a pitch off his shin against the Cardinals.
White Sox: Manager Pedro Grifol said RHP Mike Clevinger (right elbow inflammation) will need at least one more rehab start with Triple-A Charlotte. The 33-year-old right-hander allowed two runs and four hits in three innings on Tuesday. Clevinger went on the 15-day IL on May 28.
UP NEXT
Houston will send Spencer Arrighetti (3-6, 6.37) to the mound against Chicago’s Chris Flexen (2-6, 5.35) in the series finale Thursday afternoon.
Houston Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez has a strained muscle at the top of his right hand, a diagnosis that instills optimism he won’t have a prolonged stay on the injured list.
The three-time All-Star went on the 10-day injured list Monday, retroactive to Saturday, and returned to Houston for an MRI that revealed the muscle strain.
“We look at it as good news,” Astros manager Joe Espada said before their Wednesday afternoon game with the Milwaukee Brewers.
Espada expressed hope that Alvarez wouldn’t have to stay on the injured list longer than the required 10 days. He also said the hand issue may have played a role in Alvarez’s slow start.
Alvarez, 27, is hitting .210 with a .306 on-base percentage, three homers and 18 RBIs in 29 games this season. He batted .308 with a .392 on-base percentage, 35 homers and 86 RBIs in 147 games last year while ranking ninth in the AL Most Valuable Player balloting.
He has posted an OPS of at least .959 and has finished 13th or higher in the MVP voting each of the last three seasons.
“Once he heals, once he gets back, I think we’ll see a more aggressive at bat and be not as cautious,” Espada said. “I think it had something to do with it, yes.”
His potential return could go a long way toward boosting an Astros lineup that hasn’t been as productive as usual this season. The Astros entered Wednesday’s action ranked 21st in the majors in runs (136) and 23rd in OPS (.676). Houston has ranked 11th or better in both those categories each of the last four seasons.