Jon Singleton lofted a two-run homer that flipped the scoreboard in the sixth inning as the Houston Astros won the rubber match of their three-game series with the visiting Cleveland Guardians 8-2 on Thursday.
Singleton, who added a sacrifice fly in the seventh that capped a five-run frame, finished 2-for-3 with three RBIs and two runs.
His leadoff single in the third inning resulted in the Astros’ first run, and his two-out moon shot into the first row of seats in right field both spotted the Astros a 3-2 lead in the sixth and chased Guardians starter Logan Allen (3-2).
The Astros broke it open against Cleveland reliever Tyler Beede in the seventh, keyed by a leadoff triple from nine-hole hitter Jake Meyers. Jose Altuve’s infield hit in the third loaded the bases and set the table for Singleton to score on a passed ball, then Altuve followed with an RBI single — his third single in as many at-bats — that extended the Houston lead to 4-2.
Beede loaded the bases with walks to Alex Bregman and Kyle Tucker before hitting Jeremy Pena with a pitch that forced home Altuve. Yainer Diaz added an opposite-field single that plated Bregman and Tucker, delivering after falling into an 0-2 hole to chase Beede from the game.
Singleton greeted Guardians reliever Pedro Avila with a fly ball to center that drove in Pena.
Cleveland grabbed a 2-0 lead against Astros rookie right-hander Spencer Arrighetti in the third. Brayan Rocchio and Andres Gimenez stroked doubles and Jose Ramirez added a sacrifice fly that scored Steven Kwan, who had walked ahead of Gimenez’s RBI double.
Arrighetti settled in and worked a career-high 5 2/3 innings, allowing two runs on four hits and three walks with six strikeouts. Tayler Scott (1-1) struck out Estevan Florial to cap the sixth.
Allen allowed three runs (two earned) on seven hits and one walk with five strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings.
In addition to Singleton and Altuve, who finished 3-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored, Pena also posted a multi-hit game, going 2-for-3 with a pair of runs scored.
–Field Level Media
