Jeremy Peña’s two homers lead Astros’ five-homer barrage in 13-2 win over Athletics

Peña and Paredes started the noise early

Houston did not need long to turn the night in its direction. Isaac Paredes opened the scoring with a solo shot to left in the first inning, and the Astros kept building from there with the kind of contact that changes a game even when outs pile up alongside it. Houston struck out 13 times, but the swings that landed were loud enough to make that almost irrelevant.

The next clear jolt came in the third. Peña drove a two-run homer to centre, bringing Cam Smith home with him and stretching the lead to 3-0. That sequence said plenty about the shape of Houston’s offence on this night: Smith reached twice on walks despite going hitless, and the hitters behind him kept cashing the traffic in. Peña finished 4-for-6 with four runs and four RBIs, the most damaging bat in a lineup that had threats all the way through.

The Athletics did answer briefly in the fourth when Zack Gelof grounded into a fielder’s choice that scored Lawrence Butler, trimming the deficit to two. Any sense of a swing, though, was short-lived. In the fifth, Yordan Alvarez crushed a three-run homer to right, with Smith and Peña scoring ahead of him. That pushed the Astros to 6-1 and restored full control. Alvarez’s swing was one of five Houston homers, but it was also the one that made the game feel much steeper for the home side.

A close game for four innings became a runaway by the seventh

Houston broke the Athletics open in the seventh with a three-run inning that came in layers rather than one decisive blast. Jose Altuve singled to left to score Peña, with Paredes reaching second on an error. Christian Walker followed with a sacrifice fly that brought Paredes home, and Lucas Spence then doubled to right to score Altuve. It was a useful reminder that the Astros did not win this game on home runs alone. Three consecutive run-producing plays extended the lead.

The Athletics got one run back in the bottom half when Tommy White singled to left to score Gelof, but there was no real momentum attached to it. Houston answered again in the eighth, and again Peña was at the centre of it. His second homer of the night, a two-run drive to left, scored Jorge Barrosa and made it 11-2. Altuve then added another RBI single, this time scoring Alvarez. Spence put the last mark on the game in the ninth with a solo homer to right.

By the end, the Astros had 34 total bases, eight extra-base hits and production from nearly every key spot. Paredes went 3-for-5 with a homer. Altuve finished 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a walk. Spence had a double, a homer and two RBIs. Yainer Diaz added two hits. Houston reached 13 runs through a combination of power and sustained production across the lineup.

Houston paired power with seven steady innings from Wesneski

Houston’s pitching should not get lost behind the scoreline. Wesneski gave the Astros exactly the kind of start a hitter-heavy night needs: seven innings, six hits, two runs, one earned run, one walk and five strikeouts on 82 pitches. He did not allow the Athletics to build crooked innings, and Houston’s staff as a whole never gave up an extra-base hit. Ronel Blanco closed the final two innings without allowing a hit and struck out three, which kept the game from getting messy late.

the Astros were better than the raw homer total alone. Yes, five balls left the yard, but the stronger indicator was breadth. Houston scored in five different innings, mixed power with RBI singles and a sacrifice fly, and got on base enough to force 182 pitches from Athletics pitching. If there is a nit to pick in a 13-run night, it is efficiency. The Astros still struck out 13 times, despite their substantial offensive production. It was simply one with far more impact than waste.

the Athletics need two obvious corrections, and both show up clearly in the numbers. On the mound, nine strikeouts from Jack Perkins could not overcome three home runs and six runs in five innings, and the relief group behind him gave up another seven runs over the final four innings. At the plate, six singles and two walks were not enough, with no extra-base hit to change an inning quickly. Henry Bolte and White each had two hits, and Gelof had two hits, a run and an RBI, but the lineup never found the one swing that might have made Houston uncomfortable. Against an offence this deep, that left almost no margin for error.

Scoring moments

1. 1st Inning

   Paredes homered to left (374 feet).

2. 3rd Inning

   Peña homered to center (417 feet), Smith scored.

3. 4th Inning

   Gelof grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, Butler scored, McNeil out at second, Langeliers to third.

4. 5th Inning

   Alvarez homered to right (401 feet), Smith scored and Peña scored.

5. 7th Inning

   Altuve singled to left, Peña scored, Paredes safe at second on error.

6. 7th Inning

   Walker hit sacrifice fly to right, Paredes scored, Altuve to third.

7. 7th Inning

   Spence doubled to right, Altuve scored, Diaz to third.

8. 7th Inning

   White singled to left, Gelof scored.

9. 8th Inning

   Peña homered to left (425 feet), Barrosa scored.

10. 8th Inning

    Altuve singled to center, Alvarez scored.

11. 9th Inning

    Spence homered to right (380 feet).