Another Big Blast From Alvarez Gives Astros a Commanding Lead

“What games like that do, it excites the fans, it excites us,” Baker said. “It transcends from top to bottom, to the fans, to the office workers, to the janitors, everybody in the organization, just trying to think positive about an outcome of the game.”

The Astros held on to that positivity for Game 2 and again counted on Alvarez, who went deep again Thursday. This time, Alvarez hit a two-run home run to left field in the bottom of the sixth, turning a 2-1 deficit for the Astros into a 3-2 lead.

Valdez started Thursday’s game efficiently, retiring the Mariners’ first eight batters of the day. He was aided by Kyle Tucker, who hit a solo home run to right field in the second inning.

Valdez struggled in the fourth, giving up a walk and then a double with one out, setting the stage for Carlos Santana with runners at second and third.

Santana hit a short ground ball that Valdez fielded. He tried to get the out at home but made an errant throw to his catcher Martín Maldonado, giving up a run. The error prompted a visit to the mound from the Astros pitching coach, Josh Miller, and Maldonado.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/13/sports/baseball/astros-mariners-alds-game-2.html