HOUSTON (AP) — Aledmys Díaz hit a grand slam, Jake Odorizzi threw five innings of one-hit ball and the Houston Astros beat the Detroit Tigers 5-0 on Sunday for a four-game sweep and their seventh straight win.
Díaz’s second home run of the season came in the third inning on a 92 mph fastball from Tigers reliever Drew Hutchison (0-3). It went 347 feet to left-center field, scoring José Altuve, Alex Bregman and Yordan Alvarez for a 4-0 lead.
“It was great, especially on this day,” Díaz said. “There was a lot of emotion in that swing. I texted my mom, and she’s very happy. I said, ‘I did it for you,’ and I’m pretty happy about that.”
Bregman later padded the lead with a solo homer off Joe Jimenez for his fifth home run of the season.
Houston finished a red-hot homestand against Seattle and Detroit 7-0. When the homestand began, they were 11-11.
Odorizzi (3-2) allowed one hit in five innings, while striking out five. The veteran right-hander has allowed just one run across his last three starts after allowing 12 runs in his first three starts of the season.
“What a homestand that was — 7-0, that’s pretty darn impressive,” Odorizzi said. “We’re playing some pretty good ball right now. It’s a lot easier to win when we limit the damage. When we go like this, the staff, we’re pretty hard to defeat. It’s fun to watch.”
Cristian Javier pitched three scoreless innings in relief of Odorizzi. He struck out five and gave up no hits. Javier was scheduled to make his third start of the season Tuesday, but his return to the bullpen signals that the Astros are likely moving away from their recent six-game rotation.
“Pitching is the name of the game,” Astros manager Dusty Baker said. “Our guys are going deep in the games so our bullpen…
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