HOUSTON (AP) — The Houston Astros are second in the majors with 179 home runs.
But on Tuesday night, it was the Seattle Marinerswho put on a power display, hitting three homers capped by Logan Morrison’s tiebreaking two-run pinch-hit long ball in the eighth inning to get a 7-5 win over the Astros.
“It’s something that we’re definitely capable of as well,” Morrison said. “I don’t think we’re a small-ball team by any means.”
The game was tied 5-5 when Morrison hit the third pinch-hit homer of his career, sending a pitch from Pat Neshek (3-4) into the seats in right field.
“He’s coming around,” manager Lloyd McClendon said. “He had a tough stretch there where nothing was working for him. Obviously it doesn’t get any bigger than a pinch-hit home run to win the game.”
Morrison talked about the challenges of delivering when given only sporadic playing time.
“I think a lot of times getting a good pitch to hit is the biggest thing for me, and I think sometimes with limited playing time I get a little anxious,” he said. “So you’ve got to get a good pitch to hit and then be ready for it.”
Franklin Gutierrez hit a solo homer in the second and Mark Trumbo, who homered twice on Monday, added a two-run shot off the train beyond Houston’s left-center field wall to give Seattle a 5-3 lead in the fifth.
Jose Altuve hit an RBI single with two outs in the sixth to get Houston within 1. The Astros tied it up when Jake Marisnick scored from third on an error by catcher John Hicks when he tried to pick off Altuve at second base.
Logan Kensing (1-0) pitched a scoreless seventh for his first win since 2009 and Tom Wilhelmsen threw a perfect ninth for his seventh save.
Houston starter Scott Feldman left the game with right shoulder discomfort after walking five and giving up three hits and three runs in 2 2-3 innings.
“It felt worse and worse,” he said. “It felt tight at the beginning of the game, but (then) it started feeling to where it was actually starting to hurt. You got to try to know the difference between tightness and putting yourself and the team in a bad position. Once I started hurting, I don’t want to go out there and tear my shoulder.”
He’ll have an MRI on Wednesday.
Marisnick had a solo shot in the fourth for the Astros, who remain in first place in the AL West.
Mariners starter Roenis Elias allowed five hits and four runs with four walks in 5 1-3 innings.
Gutierrez led off the second with his 11th homer to put Seattle up 1-0. Seth Smith followed with a triple before the Mariners added another run after Feldman walked three consecutive batters with two outs in the inning.
Max Stassi cut the lead to 2-1 with a two-out RBI single in the second inning.
Feldman walked two straight batters before grimacing after a pitch to Trumbo that resulted in a fly out for the second out of the third inning. Trainers visited with him briefly on the mound before he left the game and was replaced by Vince Velasquez.
Velasquez promptly allowed a single by Brad Miller that made it 3-1.
Houston got within 3-2 on a sacrifice fly by Carlos Gomez in the third, and Marisnick’s homer tied it in the fourth.
Carlos Correa snagged Robinson Cano’s line drive with a diving effort for the first out of the fifth. Trumbo’s 20th homer came with two outs in the inning.
Via USAToday