BLUE JAYS DEFEAT ASTROS
Yordan shines, Astros' comeback falls short in loss to Blue Jays
Jul 2, 2024, 9:17 pm
Blue Jays defeat the Astros, 7-6. Photo by Christopher Pasatieri/Getty Images.
George Springer hit a three-run home run against his former team, Spencer Horwitz added a solo homer and the Toronto Blue Jays held on to beat the Houston Astros 7-6 on Tuesday night.
Yordan Alvarez homered and scored twice as Houston almost came back from a 7-0 deficit, but the Astros lost for just the second time in their last 12 games.
José Berríos (8-6) pitched five innings to win back-to-back starts for the first time since a three-start winning streak between April 8 and 20. The right-hander allowed five runs and five hits.
Chad Green pitched around Jemery Peña’s leadoff double in the ninth for his third save in three chances.
Houston's Jose Altuve had three hits but flied out to center to end it.
Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. went 1 for 3 with a walk and scored twice in his return to the lineup after being scratched from Monday's loss. Guerrero was hit on the fingers by a 96 mph fastball from Yankees right-hander Gerrit Cole on Sunday.
Toronto’s Justin Turner opened the scoring with a two-out RBI single off Astros right-hander Spencer Arrighetti in the first inning, and the Blue Jays used two homers to add four more runs with a two-out rally in the third.
Horwitz homered off the facing of the second deck in right, and Guerrero followed with a double. Turner walked before Springer homered into Toronto’s left field bullpen.
Springer’s homer was his fourth in seven games.
Blue Jays rookie Addison Barger hit an RBI double in the fourth and Alejandro Kirk scored on a passed ball by Houston’s César Salazar.
Arrighetti (4-7) allowed seven runs, six earned, and six hits in four innings.
The Astros chased Berríos with a five-run fifth. Salazar and Altuve hit RBI singles and Alvarez drilled a three-run homer.
ROSTER MOVES
Houston optioned IF/OF Cooper Hummel to Triple-A Sugar Land and recalled INF Grae Kessinger.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Astros: RHP J.P. France had right shoulder surgery Monday and will miss the rest of the season, the team said.
Blue Jays: Toronto put INF Isiah Kiner-Falefa (sprained left knee) on the 10-day IL, retroactive to Monday, and recalled INF Leo Jimenez from Triple-A Buffalo. Manager John Schneider said Kiner-Falefa will need more than 10 days to recover and called him “week-to-week.”
UP NEXT
Astros RHP Ronel Blanco (8-3, 2.49 ERA), who no-hit the Blue Jays in April, is scheduled to start Wednesday night against Toronto LHP Yusei Kikuchi (4-8, 4.18).
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Oswald Peraza hit a two-run single in the ninth inning to help the Los Angeles Angels snap a three-game losing skid by beating the Houston Astros 4-1 on Saturday night.
Peraza entered the game as a defensive replacement in the seventh inning and hit a bases-loaded fly ball to deep right field that eluded the outstretched glove of Cam Smith. It was the fourth straight hit off Astros closer Bryan Abreu (3-4), who had not allowed a run in his previous 12 appearances.
The Angels third run of the ninth inning scored when Mike Trout walked with the bases loaded.
Kyle Hendricks allowed one run while scattering seven hits over six innings. He held the Astros to 1 for 8 with runners in scoring position, the one hit coming on Jesús Sánchez’s third-inning infield single that scored Jeremy Peña.
Reid Detmers worked around a leadoff walk to keep the Astros scoreless in the seventh, and José Fermin (3-2) retired the side in order in the eighth before Kenley Jansen worked a scoreless ninth to earn his 24th save.
Houston’s Spencer Arrighetti struck out a season-high eight batters over 6 1/3 innings. The only hit he allowed was Zach Neto’s third-inning solo home run.
Yordan Alvarez had two hits for the Astros, who remained three games ahead of Seattle for first place in the AL West.
Key moment
Peraza’s two-run single to deep right field that broke a 1-1 tie in the ninth.
Key Stat
Opponents were 5 for 44 against Abreu in August before he allowed four straight hits in the ninth.
Up next
Astros RHP Hunter Brown (10-6, 2.37 ERA) faces RHP José Soriano (9-9, 3.85) when the series continues Sunday.