Yordan Alvarez's clutch 34th HR lifts Astros to sweep
Yordan Alvarez smashed his MLB-leading 34th home run, a go-ahead two-run blast in the eighth inning that lifted the Houston Astros to a 5-2 win and a three-game sweep of the Miami Marlins on Wednesday night at Daikin Park in Houston.
Key Takeaways
- Alvarez's two-run shot off Sandy Alcantara broke a 2-2 tie and put Houston ahead for good.
- Isaac Paredes followed with a back-to-back homer as the Astros completed a sweep.
- Alvarez leads the majors in home runs and remains in the American League Triple Crown race.
- Peter Lambert threw six solid innings, and Bryan Abreu closed out his sixth save.
What happened in the eighth inning?
With the score knotted at 2-2, Jeremy Peña singled to open the eighth against Alcantara, who entered the frame already at 97 pitches. Alvarez then crushed a 1-1 fastball an estimated 394 feet over the left-center-field wall, giving Houston a 4-2 lead on his league-leading 34th homer of the season, according to MLB.com.
Paredes immediately followed with a towering homer to left, ending Alcantara's night at 108 pitches and stretching the margin to 5-2. The back-to-back blasts sealed the series sweep for Houston.
Why does this keep Yordan Alvarez in the MVP race?
Alvarez is making a serious Triple Crown push by leading the American League in batting average, home runs, and RBIs. He is 17-for-33 with five homers and nine RBIs over his past nine games, and his 34 long balls leave him three shy of his career high of 37 set in 2022.
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How did the Astros build and hold the lead?
Nick Allen's RBI single in the second put Houston up 1-0, and Peña led off the third with a solo homer for a 2-0 edge. Peña has now homered in a career-best three straight games and is batting .360 (18-for-50) over his last 13 contests.
Starter Peter Lambert worked six innings, allowing two runs on six hits and two walks after escaping a bases-loaded jam in the first. Miami tied it in the fourth on consecutive RBI hits by Javier Sanoja and Joe Mack. Steven Okert tossed a clean eighth on eight pitches, and Abreu earned his sixth save with a strikeout in the ninth.
The win was manager Joe Espada's 225th with the club, moving him alone into 10th place on the Astros' all-time wins list. Miami has now dropped nine straight since before the All-Star break.