The Astros beat the Twins 6-4 Tuesday night at Daikin Park. They were down 3-0 after three innings, but then the Astros erupted for six runs in the fourth. Yordan Alvarez's grand slam was the big blow, and it was his 26th homer of the season. Just four home runs behind Kyle Schwarber, who leads the league with 30.
It was a rough start for the Astros on the mound.
Victor Caratini, former Astros backup catcher, was hit by a pitch with bases loaded in the first, giving the Twins a 1-0 lead. Ryan Kreidler followed with a two-run single to make it 3-0, all in the first inning.
But the Astros answered in a massive way in the fourth.
Cam Smith and Taylor Trammell singled to start the inning. Then Yainer Diaz hit an RBI single, and Raynel Delgado followed up with a walk, loading the bases. Altuve, who leads the team in overturned calls, made his most recent challenge, and it was a crucial one. Altuve challenged a strikeout call on a full count; the call was overturned, and another run scored.
That brought Alvarez up to the plate with bases loaded, and the best case scenario happened for the Astros. Yordan Alvarez crushed a grand slam to right-center, his 26th homer, to complete the six-run inning, giving the Astros some serious breathing room.
As for the pitching performance, Mike Burrows started Tuesday night's game. He pitched five innings and allowed four earned runs on six hits. He struck out three, walked two, and improved to 4-8 on the season.
To close out the game, they brought in Josh Hader. He struck out two in the ninth for his eighth save of the season.
The Astros improve to 43-45 and evened out the three game series against the Twins. This team has been on a roll lately, and a win tonight would give them their sixth consecutive series win.
A big momentum win heading into Wednesday's series finale. Tatsuya Imai faces Taj Bradley tonight with a chance to take the series.
