Spence Powers Astros with Three-Homer Night Against A's

Houston Astros rookie centerfielder Lucas Spence had a night to remember, crushing the first three home runs of his career in West Sacramento and propelling his team to a much-needed 7-5 victory over the Athletics.

The first was a three-run shot to put the Astros up 3-0 in the top of the second, and the second came in a 4-4 tie that put the Astros ahead in the seventh. A solo shot in the top of the ninth pushed Houston's lead back to two runs at 7-5 after the A's had cut that deficit in the previous half-inning. 

Christian Walker added a solo homer of his own to push the lead to 6-4 in the eighth, and the A's just didn't have an answer. The ball was flying for both teams, with all 12 runs coming on homers, but the Astros launched more balls into orbit on Thursday night. 

In their final series of the 2025 regular season, the A's took two of three games from the Houston Astros, helping to keep them from catching the Detroit Tigers for the final American League Wild Card spot. This year, the A's are looking to end Houston's season yet again. 

The Astros and Texas Rangers began the day tied in the AL West, but an early Rangers win gave them a half-game cushion with Houston needing to answer. Houston's win keeps them tied with three to play, though Houston holds the tiebreaker. 

Spence put the Astros ahead with a three-run homer in the top of the second, his first career home run. 

Jeff McNeil added a three-run blast of his own in the bottom of the third, bringing things back to even. Zack Gelof followed him up with a solo home run of his own, his 21st of the season, giving the A's a 4-3 lead. 

Of course it was a solo home run in the top of the sixth that tied things up. Isaac Paredes clubbed Mason Barnett's 81st pitch of the game. 

Barnett was done after six innings, giving up four hits, four runs, walking two, and striking out eight. He gave up two of Houston's homers, while reliever Scott Blewett gave up Spence's second home run, Chris Roycroft allowed the Walker home run, and Elvis Alvarado gave up Spence's third homer of the night. 

Gelof added a second home run of his own in the bottom of the eighth, his 22nd of the season. 

While the 7-5 final wasn't what the A's were after on this night, they came into the game with key relievers Luis Medina and Hogan Harris having pitched the past two nights. The six innings that Barnett provided could put the team in a better spot moving deeper into the weekend with Jacob Lopez scheduled to start on Friday and a surging Jack Perkins in line for Saturday's game.