ANGELS DEFEAT ASTROS

Bullpen blunders doom Astros as Angels win finale

Bullpen blunders doom Astros as Angels win finale
Angels defeat Astros, 9-7. Composite Getty Image.

Logan O'Hoppe hit a two-run homer with one out in the ninth to complete a four-hit game, and the Los Angeles Angels rallied for a 9-7 victory over the Houston Astros on Sunday despite Jose Altuve tying a career high with four hits.

After Kevin Pillar got aboard with a one-out single to left, O'Hoppe hit a slider from Josh Hader (3-4) deep to left field. Trey Cabbage tried to make a play on it near the short wall, but appeared to drop it as he went halfway over the wall.

Mickey Moniak and Michael Stefanic also drove in two runs apiece as the Angels avoided a series sweep.

Carlos Estévez (1-3) retired the Astros in the ninth to get the win.

Altuve also homered and drove in three runs. It was his first four-hit game this season and 39th of his career. His two-run homer during the sixth inning gave Houston a 7-4 lead before the Angels rallied.

Alex Bregman extended his hitting streak to 11 games with an RBI double in the third inning. He left the game in the bottom of the sixth after being hit in the left hand by Hunter Strickland's sinker in the top of the inning.

The Angels took a 4-3 lead in the fifth on Willie Calhoun's base hit that drove in Luis Rengifo. The advantage was short lived though as the Astros responded in the sixth.

Jose Abreu and Chas McCormick had RBI doubles before Altuve drove Hunter Strickland's slider into the rockpile in left-center for a two-run shot to give the Astros a three-run lead.

Moniak's base hit in the sixth drove in O'Hoppe to get the Angels within two runs before they tied it in the eighth.

Zach Neto had an RBI double, advanced to third on Ryan Pressley's wild pitch and scored on Stefanic's slow grounder to second to tie it at 7-all.

UP NEXT

Astros: RHP Spencer Arrighetti (3-5, 5.79 ERA) takes the mound on Monday for the start of a three-game set at San Francisco.

Angels: Open a three-game series at Arizona on Tuesday. LHP José Suarez (1-0, 6.54 ERA) will make his first start of the season.

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Cam Akers is going back to Minnesota. Composite Getty Image.

The Minnesota Vikings have acquired running back Cam Akers in a trade for the second straight year, agreeing Tuesday to send a late draft pick to the Houston Texans for more depth at the position.

The deal, which was contingent on Akers passing a physical exam, has the Vikings sending a conditional sixth-round pick in the 2026 draft to the Texans for Akers and a conditional seventh-round pick in the 2026 draft.

Akers, who was a second-round draft pick by the Los Angeles Rams in 2020 when current Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell was the offensive coordinator there, came to the Vikings in a deal with the Rams on Sept. 20, 2023. He had 138 rushing yards and 70 receiving yards in six games before suffering a season-ending Achilles tendon tear.

Akers signed with the Texans this year after considering a return to the Vikings. He had 147 rushing yards and 16 receiving yards in five games, helping fill in for the injured Joe Mixon.

Akers has 1,728 rushing yards and 336 receiving yards in five NFL seasons. He led the league with 67 rushing attempts during the 2021 postseason while helping the Rams to a Super Bowl title.

The Vikings could be without starting running back Aaron Jones Sr. this week after he hurt his hip in the previous game. Ty Chandler is next in line.

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