OAKLAND, Calif.—Ronel Blanco held the Oakland Athletics in check for seven innings in his return from a suspension and Kyle Tucker hit a two-run home run to lead the Houston Astros to a 5–2 victory on Sunday.
“Just like he did not lose a beat,” Houston Manager Joe Espada said of Blanco. “We were trying to be smart about his pitches, but he was so efficient. He was pounding the zone. His stuff was so good. It was hard to not to let him go back out there and continue to save our bullpen. ... Blanco, I can’t speak enough to how good he’s been for us.”
Jose Altuve added a two-run single in front of an announced crowd of 10,927 to help the Astros win the series and improve to 18–4 against the A’s over the past two seasons.
Blanco (5–0) looked sharp in his return from a 10-game suspension for having a foreign substance in his glove during a start against Oakland in Houston last week.
“I really wasn’t focused on that,” Blanco said through an interpreter. “I was mostly just focused on coming here and doing my job, trying to throw my pitches, and trying to help my team win.”
He struck out five of his first eight batters and allowed only four hits, including a solo homer by Max Schuemann, before turning the game over to the bullpen. Houston improved to 8–1 in games started this season by Blanco, who has allowed only 33 hits in 54 1/3 innings.
“Another phenomenal start,” Mr. Espada said. “We needed for him to go deep in the game, and he did. He had all of his pitches working. Incredible how he pounds his zone. He stays aggressive, induces groundballs when he needs to, gets swings and misses. Just a very strong performance.”
Shea Langeliers of the A’s hit a solo homer against Josh Hader in the ninth .
Oakland starter Aaron Brooks (0–2) pitched around trouble in the first three innings, inducing double-play grounders in the first and second, and then striking out Alex Bregman to leave the bases loaded in the third.
Brooks appeared to be on his way to working out of the fourth after allowing only one run but two errors by Schuemann at shortstop led to a big inning for Houston.
Schuemann bobbled a two-out grounder by Mauricio Dubon and then threw the ball wildly to second base for his second error on the play, allowing runners to advance to second and third.
Altuve followed with a two-run single, and Tucker hit his 18th home run to give the Astros a 5–0 lead.
Trainer’s Room
Astros: Right-hander Cristian Javier did not throw his scheduled bullpen session before the game because of “a little forearm discomfort,” Mr. Espada said. Javier is day to day. ... First baseman José Abreu, who accepted a minor-league assignment after a sluggish start to the season, is set to rejoin the team on Monday in Seattle after going 0 for 7 with a walk in two rehab games with Sugar Land, Texas.Up Next
Astros: Left-hander Framber Valdez (3–2, 4.32) is set to start Monday’s opener of a four-game series at Seattle.Athletics: Oakland is off for Memorial Day and will begin a three-game series at Tampa Bay on Tuesday. Right-hander Mitch Spence (3–2, 4.09) is expected to start.
