Alvarez's heroics cap off Astros' win
Yordan Alvarez was a one-man wrecking crew for the Houston Astros in their 3-2 win over the Los Angeles Angels. Alvarez's first-inning home run set the tone, and his single in the ninth brought home the go-ahead run, sealing the victory for the Astros.
Angels starter Reid Detmers put together a strong performance with five innings of two-run ball and nine strikeouts, but Alvarez was the key to Houston's success. Detmers gave up Alvarez's first-inning home run, and later struggled with a hanging slider to Christian Walker, who added a two-out run to give Houston the lead.
Angels' pitching falters late in the game
With the game tied at 2-2 after five innings, the Angels' bullpen took over and seemed to have control of the game. But in the ninth, Houston's pinch hitters generated enough traffic to put pressure on closer Mitch Farris. Farris struck out a pair of Houston hitters, but the Angels made a questionable choice to pitch to Alvarez, who sent the game home.
Jorge Soler, one of the Angels' trade targets, added to the score in the fifth with an RBI double. Vaughn Grissom also gave the Angels a brief lead in the third with a run, but the Astros' offense was too much to overcome.
Detmers reflects on trade deadline chatter
The trade deadline is approaching, and Detmers is ready for the speculation to end. He said in an interview that while the attention is part of the game, it's important to focus on the task at hand. Detmers said he'd like to have back a couple of pitches, but otherwise felt solid in his performance.