Valdez Shuts Down Angels. Siri, Maldonado Homers, Margo Slam Give Astros Crushing 10-0 Win in Anaheim

Framber Valdez shut the Angels out for seven innings tonight, allowing seven hits, three walks, and six strikeouts. The hits were mostly weak grounders, as Framber got 12 groundouts against only two flyouts.

Meanwhile, for most of the game, Valdez pitched under duress, as the Astros made it a pitching duel, scoring only two runs during his stay on the mound.

But a combined eight runs in the last two innings of the game gave the Astros a commanding 10-0 win, dominating the Angels in all aspects of the game.

The Astros scored in the first inning, starting with a lead-off homer by...Jose Siri? Yes, Siri led off the game and got his fourth homer of the season, this following his game-tying monster shot last night.

The Astros would score again in the first with singles by Yordan Alvarez, Yuli Gurriel, and a run-scoring single by Carlos Correa. It was the first of four hits for Correa on the night.

Neither team would score again until the eighth inning, although the Angels stranded the bases loaded in the seventh. Valdez’s scoreless night was preserved by a stunning backhand play by Correa, who then rifled a bounce throw to first to get David Fletcher by a hair.

After Valdez departed the Astros bats exploded.

A four-run eighth inning put the game away, highlighted by a three-run Martin Maldonado homer to deep left-center field.

The Stros would pile on in the ninth on a Marwin Gonzalez grand slam, his fourth hit as an Astro, three of them homers.

Brooks Raley, in relief of Valdez, got three up and three down in the eighth, although Shohei Ohtani, who was hitless for the night, took Raley to the warning track in center.

In the ninth, the Astros introduced another rookie pitcher, 27-year-old Seth Martinez, who faced the minimum three batters after ending the game with a double play.

The Astros took the league lead in runs scored tonight with 806 for the season. Along with the 10 runs tonight the Astros got 17 hits, including two doubles and three homers.

Hopefully, the Astros can pile on again behind Jose Urquidy. Game time 8:38 CDT.

Box Score and Videos Here.