Before beginning a three-game series against the Athletics, the Houston Astros (64-64) were blown out 18-3 in the rubber match of a three-game set against the Los Angeles Angels (51-77) at Daikin Park on Thursday.
It marked Houston’s fourth loss in its past 10 games.
After the loss, Astros star designated hitter Yordan Alvarez made an honest statement.
Houston Astros DH Yordan Alvarez Drops Blunt Quote After Loss to Angels
Via The Athletic’s Chander Rome: “For us,” Yordan Alvarez said, “it’s a slap in the face to come out here tomorrow and get a victory.”
Alvarez went 1-for-1 with a double, run and walk before being removed from the game.
The Astros’ division lead over the second-place Texas Ranger shrunk to one game after the loss.
Angels Defeat Astros 18-3
Angels shortstop Zach Neto went 5-for-6 with a home run, seven RBI and two walks en route to Los Angeles’ dominant victory over Houston.
The Angels tagged Astros starter Peter Lambert for nine earned runs on eight hits and two walks over 3 2/3 innings. Bryan King allowed five runs over 1 1/3 innings, and Tatsuya Imai surrendered two runs over three innings. Position player LaMonte Wade allowed a pair of runs in an inning of relief.
Los Angeles put up the first run of the game in the first. Houston answered by scoring two in the first, then didn’t scored again until the ninth inning.
In between the Astros’ second and third runs, the Angels scored three in the second, six in the fourth, four in the fifth, two in the seventh and two in the ninth.
Adam Frazier, Josh Lowe and Moises Ballesteros each had a pair of hits. Vaughn Grissom collected three hits.
For Houston, Issac Paredes and Nick Allen each had two hits. Overall, the Astros collected eight hits while the Angels had 18.
What’s Next For The Astros
Houston is set to begin a three-game series against the Athletics at Daikin Park this weekend.
Game 1 of the series is slated to begin at 7:10 p.m. CDT on Friday.
Houston Astros’ Yordan Alvarez Drops Blunt Quote Before Athletics Series