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The timing could not have worked out any better for Astros manager Joe Espada, whose decision to drop first baseman Christian Walker in the batting order on Saturday paid immediate dividends.

Walker smacked a game-tying, two-run home run with two outs in the sixth inning to spark the Astros to a 3-2 win over the visiting San Diego Padres that clinched this three-game interleague series.

Walker hit cleanup for the first 19 games before sliding to the No. 5 hole on Saturday. He responded with his second home run this season, his first campaign with Houston after signing as a free agent. Walker spent the previous eight seasons with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

“Wanted to change some things up there in the middle,” Espada said. “Hopefully, we can get some of those guys going here.

“… Just trying to get (Yainer) Diaz, (Jeremy) Pena and (Walker) going a little bit and see if we can get some more consistent, quality at-bats in a row. But once (Walker) gets going, he’ll be in the middle of our lineup throughout the season.”

Diaz and Walker were batting .155 and .159, respectively, entering the game Saturday. Pena, entering at .222, moved to the cleanup spot and extended his hitting streak to 10 games with a leadoff single in the eighth.

Left-hander Framber Valdez (1-2, 4.91 ERA) is scheduled to start Sunday as the Astros pursue the series sweep. He allowed seven runs on 10 hits and one walk with three strikeouts over four innings in an 8-3 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday.

Valdez is 0-2 with a 3.18 ERA over three career starts against the Padres. In his lone start against the Padres last season, Valdez allowed one run on five hits and two walks with six strikeouts over seven innings in a 4-0 road loss on Sept. 18, 2024.

Right-hander Dylan Cease (1-1, 6.64 ERA) is set to start the series finale for the Padres. He did not factor into the decision of a 10-4 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Monday after allowing three runs (two earned) on seven hits and one walk with six strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings.

Cease is 1-1 with a 3.32 ERA over seven career starts against the Astros. In his most recent start against Houston, last Sept. 18, Cease finished two outs shy of a two-hit shutout after recording five strikeouts in a 4-0 road win opposite Valdez.

Padres first baseman Luis Arraez finished 0-for-2 with a pair of walks on Saturday after slugging his third home run of the season in the series opener. Arraez, who notched his fourth three-hit game of 2025 on Friday, didn’t hit his third home run last season until July 23.

A three-time batting champion, Arraez hit a career-high 10 home runs in 2023 with the Miami Marlins. While prodigious power isn’t part of his profile, he possesses the talent to drive the ball over the fence when the opportunity presents itself.

“He’s a great hitter,” Padres manager Mike Shildt said. “He’s going to look to hit wherever the ball is pitched. He’s going to know what (he’s) looking to see, but he’s got this amazing ability to know how he’s going to do it.”

–Field Level Media