Jon Singleton hit a 442-foot two-run homer to cap a three-run first inning and the visiting Houston Astros stopped a nine-game losing streak to the New York Yankees with a 4-3 victory on Thursday.
The Astros stopped their four-game skid and avoided getting swept in the season series with New York, which they eliminated from the American League Championship Series in 2017, 2019 and 2022. Houston also improved to 3-11 in the past 14 meetings since sweeping the ALCS in 2022.
Singleton helped the Astros strike early against New York’s Marcus Stroman (2-2) by hitting a 1-0 sinker off an advertisement on the third deck in right field Singleton quickly dropped his bat and admired the blast as the ball landed about halfway in the second deck.
Yordan Alvarez preceded Singleton’s 115.4 mph blast with a 395-foot drive into the second deck in right field that exited his bat at 116.8.
After hitting his eighth homer, Alvarez doubled and scored on Jeremy Pena’s RBI single in the fifth.
Anthony Volpe hit a two-run homer that just cleared the right field fence in the third but the Yankees saw a five-game winning streak stopped. Aaron Judge hit a 473-foot homer in the eighth off Ryan Pressly but Anthony Rizzo popped out against Josh Hader to end the inning.
Houston starter Ronel Blanco (4-0) allowed two runs on four hits in 5 2/3 innings while throwing a career-high 107 pitches. Blanco got three of his five strikeouts against Giancarlo Stanton and issued two of his four walks to Juan Soto.
Bryan Abreu whiffed Gleyber Torres with a runner on to end the sixth and struck out two in a perfect seventh. After Hader finished the eighth, the left-hander allowed a leadoff single to Torres before fanning Volpe to secure his fourth save in five chances.
Stroman allowed four runs on nine hits in 5 2/3 innings. He struck out five and walked two.