Astros secure 3-2 victory
The Houston Astros defeated the Los Angeles Angels 3-2 on Thursday, August 20, at Daikin Park. The home team improved to a 64-63 record, while the Angels fell to 50-77. Attendance for the game was 21,162. The contest featured a strong pitching performance from Houston rookie Ethan Pecko, who made his major league debut.
Scoring sequence unfolds
The Angels took an early lead in the third inning when Yordan Alvarez homered to left field for 383 feet. In the fourth inning, the Astros mounted a comeback. Luis Garcia's double drove in two runs, giving Houston a 2-1 lead.
The Angels tied the game at 2-2 when Jose Altuve doubled to left, scoring Alvarez. However, the Astros regained the lead late in the frame. Smith hit a sacrifice fly to center, allowing Paredes to score and take the 3-2 lead that held for the rest of the game.
Pitching performances
Ethan Pecko pitched 3.2 innings, allowing three hits and two earned runs while walking three batters and striking out four. He was followed by Bennett Sousa, who pitched 1.1 scoreless innings with one hit allowed, one walk, and one strikeout. The Astros bullpen provided the final outs, with AJ Blubaugh, Steven Okert, Bryan Abreu, and Josh Hader all pitching scoreless innings.
Hader recorded the save in his 18th save of the season, striking out two batters and walking one.
For the Angels, Walbert Urena took the loss after pitching five innings. He allowed three hits and three earned runs, walked two batters, and struck out seven. Michael Fulmer pitched one scoreless inning with two hits allowed and three strikeouts.
Tayler Saucedo followed with 1.1 scoreless innings, allowing no hits and striking out two. Luke Murphy pitched the final two-thirds of an inning without allowing a hit or a run.
Sources
https://www.espn.com/mlb/game/_/gameId/401816594
