Lawrence Butler laced a run-scoring single that highlighted a three-run eighth inning and helped carry the visiting Athletics to a 4-3 victory over the Houston Astros on Saturday.
The Athletics snapped a five-game losing skid by answering the Astros’ two-run rally in the bottom of the seventh inning. Jeff McNeil ignited the comeback with a leadoff single against Astros reliever Bennett Sousa (1-2), who then walked Zack Gelof to put the tying run on base.
Sousa later uncorked a wild pitch that scored McNeil, and Butler followed with a sharp single that Astros first baseman Christian Walker deflected but failed to glove. Gelof scored the game-tying run and, two batters later, Butler scored on Jonah Heim’s run-scoring groundout.
Athletics relievers Hogan Harris and Elvis Alvarado preserved the lead. Alvarado retired the side in order in the ninth and earned his third save.
Daulton Varsho snapped a 1-1 deadlock by driving a 2-1 fastball from Athletics reliever Luis Medina the opposite way to left field leading off the bottom of the seventh. That 358-foot blast was his second since joining the Astros from the Toronto Blue Jays at the trade deadline.
Jeremy Pena, back in the lineup after missing two games with a right hand contusion, followed with an RBI single later in the inning that drove home LaMonte Wade Jr., who doubled with two outs, to up the lead to 3-1. Pena was 0-for-3 with three strikeouts against Athletics starter Jacob Lopez.
Lopez recorded his sixth consecutive start of at least five innings with two or fewer runs allowed. He retired the final seven batters he faced after Yainer Diaz delivered a run-scoring double that scored Walker and tied the game at 1-1 with two outs in the fourth.
Lopez worked around a two-out error in the first inning and stranded two runners in the second before retiring seven consecutive batters prior to Walker with one out in the fourth. He allowed one run on three hits and one walk with a season-high-tying nine strikeouts over six innings.
Donovan Walton led off the third with a 422-foot home run off Astros starter Hunter Brown, opening the scoring with his fourth homer. Brown allowed seven hits and issued three walks while recording four strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings. He induced three double plays to navigate the traffic.
–Field Level Media
