Astros Rally in Seventh Inning to Defeat Athletics 5-3

AP Photo/Albert Pena

On Wednesday, the Houston Astros staged a late comeback against the Oakland Athletics, winning 5-3 after a pivotal seventh inning rally. The Athletics had led by one run going into the seventh, but the Astros quickly turned the game around thanks to key hits by Zach Dezenzo and Victor Caratini Dezenzo homered and Caratini drove in two. Rookie pitcher Justin Sterner, who relieved Athletics starter Luis Severino, gave up a game-tying home run to Dezenzo, his second of the season, which traveled 416 feet to center field. Shortly after, with runners on second and third and two outs, Caratini lined a single to center, driving in two runs and giving Houston the lead Caratini’s clutch hit sealed the rally. Houston’s Lance McCullers Jr. delivered a strong performance, pitching six innings and allowing three runs on five hits while striking out twelve batters, tying his career high (McCullers tied career high strikeouts). This was McCullers’ fifth start after returning from injury, and his dominant outing helped keep the Astros in contention until their offensive breakthrough.

Reliever Shawn Dubin earned the win by striking out two in a scoreless seventh inning, and closer Josh Hader secured his 14th save of the season with a perfect ninth. Meanwhile, the Athletics were unable to recover despite Jacob Wilson’s two-RBI home run. Oakland’s recent struggles continued as they fell to 3-17 over their last 20 games. Athletics’ starting pitcher Severino recorded six innings with two runs allowed and struck out four batters, reaching a career milestone of 1,003 strikeouts, ranking him among the top active players. Christian Walker was hit on the hand by a pitch during the game and left with an injury but was not seriously hurt after negative X-rays Walker injury update. The Astros’ late-game rally was a testament to their resilience and ability to capitalize on opportunities, turning a close contest into a solid victory.