TORONTO, ONT – Jose Altuve hit a tiebreaking single in a four-run seventh inning, Yordan Alvarez homered for the third straight game and the Houston Astros beat the Toronto Blue Jays 9-2 on Wednesday night for their 11th win in 13 games.
Houston’s Yainer Diaz reached base four times and drove in three as the Astros handed the struggling Blue Jays their 11th loss in 15.
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Alvarez twisted his left ankle taking an awkward swing on his ground ball to second base that ended the first inning, but Houston’s designated hitter reached base in his next four plate appearances.
“I just got tangled up with my feet,” Alvarez said through a translator. “Right now it’s a little bit tight. I think what helped me is I use high cleats. They’re tight around the ankle so they didn’t allow it to rotate too much.”
Houston manager Joe Espada was relieved that Alvarez wasn’t badly hurt.
“I’m holding my breath and I’m like ‘Oh, jeez,’” manager Joe Espada said. “Then all of a sudden he goes and has another stellar performance. He’s just a really good hitter.”
Alvarez doubled home a run in the third, led off the sixth with a solo homer, came around to score after being intentionally walked in the seventh, and capped his night with an RBI double in the eighth. He finished 3 for 4 with three RBIs.
“Yordan is really good, obviously,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said. “He’s hitting balls all over the place.”
Alvarez has seven home runs in 13 career games in Toronto. It's the third time he's homered in three straight games.
“I made an adjustment the first day I got here and I definitely do feel the difference at the plate,” he said.
Right-hander Tayler Scott (5-2) got the win despite allowing a game-tying single to the only batter he faced. Bryan Abreu worked a perfect seventh, Bryan King pitched the eighth and Rafael Montero finished.
Toronto’s Bo Bichette struck out on a pitch that hit him in the ninth.
Bichette opened the scoring with a sacrifice fly in the first but Alvarez tied it with a two-out double in the third.
Alvarez gave Houston a 2-1 edge with a leadoff homer off Yusei Kikuchi in the sixth, his 19th, but Daulton Varsho tied it with a two-out single off Scott in the bottom half. Varsho went too far past first base and was thrown out to end the rally.
Chas McCormick reached on a fielding error by Blue Jays right-hander Zach Pop (0-3) to begin the seventh, and pinch-hitter Jon Singleton followed with a double. Altuve broke the 2-all tie with an RBI single.
“They took advantage of some mistakes,” Schneider said.
Pop left after Alex Bregman lined out, but Jose Cuas didn’t retire any of the four batters he faced, walking Alvarez intentionally before allowing Diaz’s two-run single on his first pitch.
“If they’re going to pitch around Yordan, Diaz needs to show discipline to get good pitches to hit and get big hits, and he’s capable of doing that,” Espada said. “That’s exactly what he’s doing.”
Cuas exited after hitting Jake Meyers and Jeremy Peña with consecutive pitches to bring home a fourth run.
Astros right-hander Ronel Blanco, who no-hit the Blue Jays on April 1, allowed two runs and four hits in 5 2/3 innings.
Kikuchi allowed two runs and five hits in 5 2/3 innings. He is winless in four starts.
ROSTER MOVES
Toronto put INF Justin Turner on the paternity list and recalled OF Steward Berroa from Triple-A Buffalo.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Astros: RHP Justin Verlander (neck) is playing catch every other day, manager Joe Espada said. There is no timetable for Verlander’s return.
Blue Jays: RHP Jordan Romano will be sidelined for at least six weeks after surgery for an impingement in his right elbow, manager John Schneider said. It’s not clear whether the two-time All-Star will return this season.
UP NEXT
Blue Jays RHP Chris Bassitt (7-6, 3.24 ERA) is scheduled to pitch against Astros LHP Framber Valdez (6-5, 4.11) in Thursday afternoon’s series finale.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb