Houston Astros stay hot, shut down Arizona Diamondbacks to take series opener
· Yahoo Sports
Not consistently has pitching carried the Houston Astros this season, a resilient bullpen notwithstanding. Their staff entered Friday still sporting the majors' seventh-highest ERA, their starting rotation the third-highest mark. An exception is unfolding at a critical time.
For the seventh time in nine games, the Astros held an opponent to three runs or fewer Friday. They've allowed five or fewer hits in six of those games. They are 7-2 in that stretch, maintaining their lead atop the American League West as the schedule dwindles.
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Five pitchers combined to author a 3-1 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night to begin a three-game series at Daikin Park. They allowed three hits, making their lineup's three-run third inning hold up and leading Houston to a modest new high.
With 20 games left in the regular season, the Astros are four games above .500 for the first time, at 73-69. They temporarily grew their division lead to 2 ½ games, pending the Rangers' result Friday night.
Cristian Javier allowed one run in five innings before handing a two-run lead to his bullpen. Enyel De Los Santos, Bennett Sousa, Bryan Abreu and Josh Hader combined for four scoreless frames. Astros pitchers worked around seven walks and recorded 13 strikeouts.
Hader struck out the side in the ninth to improve to 23-for-23 in save opportunities this season. It was the 250th save of the left-hander's career. Houston moved to 53-4 this season when leading after seven innings.
ASTROS 3, DIAMONDBACKS 1
ArizonaABRHBIBBSOAvg.Totals28131713Perdomo ss301010.252Carroll rf400002.239Moreno c211121.299Marte 2b301011.251Nootbaar dh300011.228Arenado 3b300011.233Kepler lf200000.211a-Lawlar ph-cf200002.269Tawa 1b300013.237Waldschmidt cf-lf300002.270HoustonABRHBIBBSOAvg.Totals2937306Peña ss411002.277Alvarez dh412000.317Paredes 3b301100.258Altuve 2b300101.243Allen 2b000000.275Varsho cf300000.227Walker 1b301000.229Trammell rf-lf300001.206Diaz c312100.262Wade lf200001.204Smith rf100001.212Arizona000100000_130Houston00300000x_370a-struck out for Kepler in the 7th.
LOB_Arizona 7, Houston 4. 2B_Marte (24), Paredes (25). HR_Moreno (12), off Javier; Diaz (11), off Kelly. RBIs_Moreno (68), Diaz (34), Paredes (76), Altuve (44). SB_Perdomo (20). SF_Altuve.
Runners left in scoring position_Arizona 2 (Carroll 2); Houston 1 (Varsho). RISP_Arizona 0 for 4; Houston 1 for 2.
GIDP_Arenado, Altuve.
DP_Arizona 1 (Marte, Perdomo, Tawa); Houston 2 (Peña, Altuve, Walker; Peña, Walker).
ArizonaIPHRERBBSONPERAKelly, L, 9-13673304945.06Martinez100002110.00Law100000141.93HoustonIPHRERBBSONPERAJavier, W, 2-5511138795.98De Los Santos, H, 101-31001094.43Sousa, H, 811-310022285.87Abreu, H, 1311-300010143.76Hader, S, 23-23100003160.70Inherited runners-scored_Sousa 2-0, Abreu 2-0. HBP_Law (Paredes). WP_Abreu.
ABS Challenge_Javier (Ball-Overturned to Strike); Sousa (Ball-Confirmed); Abreu (Ball-Confirmed); Martinez (Ball-Confirmed).
Umpires_Home, Chris Segal; First, Laz Diaz; Second, Edwin Jimenez; Third, Erich Bacchus.
T_2:31. A_33,482 (41,000).
How did Cristian Javier pitch?
Javier's struggles later in outings this season have shortened his leash. He began Friday allowing an .818 OPS facing hitters for the first time in a game as a starter and a 1.104 OPS the second time. Manager Joe Espada expressed hope Friday afternoon that "we can get him in the fifth" inning.
Javier got the Astros through the fifth, facing the full Diamondbacks lineup twice. He looked sharp. Javier allowed one hit, a solo home run by Gabriel Moreno on a fastball crushed into the Crawford Boxes. He walked three batters but struck out eight, tying his season high.
Arizona entered with the majors' second-lowest whiff rate. Javier induced 19 whiffs on 38 swings. Astros pitchers have recorded just five outings this season with more whiffs. One was Javier on Aug. 23, against the A's, when he recorded 21 whiffs in four-plus innings.
Eight balls put into play against Javier averaged an 85.9 mph exit velocity. Just two had an exit velocity of 95 mph or higher, the Statcast hard-hit threshold.
Javier's stuff can still play, clearly, creating a question of whether he can harness it enough to be a bigger factor for Houston down the stretch. He threw 39% of his pitches in-zone Friday, per Statcast, and threw first-pitch strikes to nine of 19 batters faced. He still handed a 3-1 lead to his bullpen.
Houston Astros' Yainer Diaz, right, celebrates with LaMonte Wade Jr. (31) after hitting a home run during the third inning of a baseball game against the Arizona Diamondbacks in Houston, Friday, Sept. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis) (Ashley Landis/Associated Press)Bennett Sousa authors an escape
Losing Steven Okert to a hamstring strain will require other Astros relievers to step into higher-leverage moments. Fellow left-hander Bennett Sousa falls into that category. Sousa awoke Friday with a 6.23 ERA over 21 ⅔ innings this season, but he entered the game in a key situation.
Enyel De Los Santos replaced Javier in the sixth. He issued a one-out walk to Moreno. Ketel Marte then sent a shallow fly ball up the left-field line. LaMonte Wade Jr. overran it slightly, slid and could not make the catch reaching back. The ball bounced fair and into the seats for a ground-rule double.
With left-handed Lars Nootbaar due up and men on second and third, Espada summoned Sousa, whose struggles have largely been against left-handed hitters this season. Sousa walked Nootbaar. But a slider induced a double-play ground ball from right-handed Nolan Arenado.
It ended the inning and preserved a 3-1 lead. Sousa returned for the seventh. He struck out two batters around a walk. Geraldo Perdomo bounced a two-out single up the middle, bringing up Corbin Carroll, a left-handed hitter with reverse splits. Espada called on Abreu, who retired Carroll on a fly out.
How Astros fared vs. Merrill Kelly
Kelly entered his outing with a 5.08 ERA, the highest among 51 qualified starters in the majors. He had a 5.85 ERA in six starts in August. He still worked a quality start against Houston.
The Astros recorded seven hits in Kelly's six innings. But their only damage against him came in the third, an inning that featured four of their hits.
Yainer Diaz opened it with a home run, hitting a slider into the Crawford Boxes. Jeremy Peña lined a one-out single over leaping shortstop Geraldo Perdomo. Yordan Alvarez reached out and flicked a changeup into center field for a single. Isaac Paredes lined a changeup into the left-field corner, a double that drove in Peña. Alvarez tagged up and scored on a shallow sacrifice fly from Jose Altuve.
Kelly did not allow a runner into scoring position in his other five innings. He generated an average exit velocity of just 81.3 mph on 21 balls put in play. The quality start was his ninth this season in 26 outings.
Yordan Alvarez's knee looks OK
After fouling a pitch off his right knee Tuesday, Alvarez appeared to be running gingerly for a couple days and was replaced by a pinch-runner in the eighth inning of a scoreless game Wednesday against Chicago.
The slugger seemed to be moving better Friday. In the third inning, Alvarez ran first-to-third on Paredes' double, then tagged up on Altuve's sacrifice fly that traveled only 237 feet. Kepler made a basket catch near the left-field line and had to gather himself quickly for a throw to the plate. His throw beat Alvarez, but Moreno could not handle the hop and Alvarez slid in safely.
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