Maldonado, White power Astros over Mariners
Martin Maldonado and Tyler White each homered and had three hits, helping the Houston Astros beat the Seattle Mariners 10-7 on Wednesday.
Maldonado had three RBI and White had two. The Astros led 9-1 before the Mariners got one back in the fifth and added five more in the sixth.
Charlie Morton (13-3) got the win despite allowing six runs before leaving the game with no one out in the sixth.
Roberto Osuna pitched the ninth to earn his 10th save and first as an Astro. The closer was acquired from Toronto last month and joined the team a week later after finishing a 75-game suspension for violating Major League Baseball’s domestic violence policy.
Marco Gonzales (12-9) was pitching on eight days of rest but allowed eight runs and 11 hits before leaving with no one out in the fourth. Gonzales has given up 23 earned runs and 38 hits in his last 20 innings over four starts.
The Astros took a 2-0 lead in the first with an RBI triple for White before Gonzales’ wild pitch enabled White to score from third. White’s home run came in the ninth.
The big inning for the Astros was the fourth, when they sent 10 to the plate and scored five runs to take an 8-1 lead.
Gonzales gave up six consecutive hits to start the inning before he was replaced by reliever Nick Rumbelow. Maldonado’s homer came one inning later to make it 9-1.
Oakland’s 4-2 loss to Texas on Wednesday gives the Astros a one-game lead in the AL West.
Nelson Cruz and Mitch Haniger each had home runs for the Mariners. Cruz hit an upper-deck shot in the fourth for his 31st homer. Haniger’s two-run homer in the sixth inning was his 20th of the season.
Texas 4, Oakland 2: Mike Minor pitched six scoreless innings of one-hit ball to win his fourth straight, Joey Gallo hit his 33rd home run and the Texas Rangers beat the Oakland Athletics 4-2.
Adrian Beltre had a pair of RBI singles to help the Rangers end a six-game losing streak to the A’s. Jurickson Profar added two hits. Elvis Andrus singled and scored after going hitless in his previous 12 at-bats. Stephen Piscotty had an RBI double for Oakland.
Milwaukee 4, Cincinnati 0: Rookie Freddy Peralta tossed seven scoreless innings and drove in a run with his first career hit, combining with two relievers on a five-hitter to lead the Milwaukee Brewers past the Cincinnati Reds 4-0.
Christian Yelich homered and finished a triple shy of the cycle, reaching base five times and driving in two runs for Milwaukee. Peralta allowed three singles, struck out seven and walked two to win for the second time in seven starts.