Early power set the tone as the Houston Astros defeated the Kansas City Royals. Jeremy Pena’s first-inning homer gave Houston the lead, and the Astros never gave it back.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| HOU | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | X | 4 | 0 | 0 |
Pena carried Houston’s offense with homers in the first and third innings. Yordan Alvarez added another homer in the fifth, with Pena scoring on the play.
Pena’s first homer was the go-ahead play. Kansas City answered when Isaac Collins scored on Carter Jensen’s double, but Alvarez’s homer brought Pena home and expanded Houston’s lead. Vinnie Pasquantino’s homer later trimmed the margin.
Hunter Brown earned the win after a strong start, striking out ten and allowing only one earned run. Michael Wacha took the loss after Houston’s power put the Royals under pressure. Bryan Abreu, AJ Blubaugh, Bennett Sousa and Josh Hader combined to hold the lead, with Hader closing the game.
Houston extended its winning streak, while Kansas City’s losing streak continued. The game belonged to early power and bullpen control from the Astros.
Houston Astros defeated Kansas City Royals, 4-2.
- Jeremy Pena went 3-for-4 with 2 home runs, 2 RBIs and 3 runs scored (batting .273 on the season).
- Yordan Alvarez went 1-for-2 with 1 home run, 2 RBIs and 1 run scored (batting .310 on the season).
- Vinnie Pasquantino went 1-for-3 with 1 home run, 1 RBI and 1 run scored (batting .240 on the season).
- Michael Wacha allowed 4 runs on 4 hits over 6.0 innings, striking out 2, and took the loss (9-9) (3.34 ERA).
- Hunter Brown allowed 1 run on 2 hits over 5.0 innings, striking out 10, to earn the win (6-3) (3.43 ERA).
- Josh Hader allowed 0 runs on 1 hit over 1.0 inning, striking out 1, and closed it out for the save (26) (0.85 ERA).
Houston Astros improved to 76-75; Kansas City Royals fell to 66-85 (3 straight losses).