DETROIT – No Yordan Alvarez, no problem.
Even with its MVP candidate, who is batting .314 with 25 homers and 56 RBIs, getting a scheduled game off, Houston notched 15 hits in an 8-6 win on Sunday over Detroit at Comerica Park.
“Nice win,” said Astros manager Joe Espada. “And no Yordan. Clutch hitting. [Christian] Walker had a big day. Jeremy [Peña had] big hits. Cam Smith, big homer. Just a great job. Our offense – we never gave up. And then our bullpen came in to do a nice job and end the game.”
Right fielder Smith got Houston on the scoreboard with a 380-foot homer he scorched at 108.7 mph off Detroit and former Astros starter Framber Valdez in the second inning. He was pinch-hit for by Joey Loperfido in the seventh because he’d fouled a pitch off his left foot, but Espada said Smith should be OK.
Third baseman Isaac Paredes’ two-run, two-out double in the eighth broke a 6-6 tie and finished the game’s scoring.
Second baseman Jose Altuve went 1-for-5 but was replaced by Raynel Delgado after a sliding play at second base in the seventh.
“The knee kind of took a hit,” said Espada. “But he should be OK. He should be good.”
Houston’s bullpen came up big, allowing just one run in 5 1/3 innings of relief. AJ Blubaugh (4-2) got the win with two scoreless innings. Closer Josh Hader shut the door with a 1-2-3 ninth to remain perfect in seven save opportunities since coming off the injured list on June 3. Opponents are batting .057 against Hader since his return.
Houston, which will be going for a fifth-straight series win Sunday after taking two of the first three, trailed by two runs entering the seventh inning. But Walker had an RBI single in the seventh to bring the Astros within a run, and they passed the baton with a three-run rally in the eighth.
Yainer Diaz (2-for-5 with two runs), Christian Vázquez and Peña (3-for-5 with two RBIs and two runs) all singled to produce one combined run. Then Paredes lined an opposite-field double to right to score the go-ahead runs.
“We in the dugout try to keep a good vibe,” Parades said through interpreter Otto Loor.
Astros starter Kai-Wei Teng allowed four earned runs in 3 2/3 innings, but it didn’t end up mattering in the final outcome.
“He’s got to get the swing-and-miss stuff,” said Espada, “and he wasn’t quite there yet today. The velo was down. The extension and some of the movement wasn’t there. Maybe he just needs a blow. We’ll see. When he’s on, they won’t be putting that many balls in play.”
Teng allowed eight hits with one walk while striking out one. Detroit’s Kerry Carpenter connected for a grand slam against him in the third, giving the Tigers a 4-3 lead after the Astros jumped on Valdez early.
Reliever Steven Okert got perhaps the biggest out of the game when Teng exited with runners on second and third with two out. He got Carpenter to ground out to end the fourth-inning threat.
Though Okert gave up a solo homer to Hao-Yu Lee in the fifth, ending his scoreless streak at 17 2/3 innings. It was the second-longest such streak in the Majors, trailing only Luke Weaver (22 innings).
Bryan King pitched a scoreless eighth after Blubaugh’s two shutout innings.
“The important thing is not only Hader, but you’ve got to get to him, right?” said Espada. “So, the bridge to him is just as important as Hader. And those guys have been strong. They’ve been giving big innings, big outs for us, allowing us to deploy one of the best closers in the game.”
Blubaugh has become a big part of the bullpen by supplying the longest stretches on the “bridge” that Espada has come to trust.
“He’s a bulldog,” said Espada. “He gets the ball. He wants to pitch. He’s resilient and has got a powerful arm. He’s getting better and better.”
“It means everything to me,” said Blubaugh on winning the trust of Espada and pitching coach Joshua Miller. “Trust from my coaches, trust from my teammates – that’s why you feel better on the mound. Coming to the field every day, I’m really starting to get along with the guys, and you feel more here. You feel more present – that’s for sure. It means the world.”
Blubaugh, who began working out of the bullpen after making three starts as a rookie in 2025, was asked by MLB.com what his range of innings is.
“My range is whatever Joe Espada tells me,” said Blubaugh, who even sounds like a bulldog.
Houston found a way with a true team victory, and has now gone an MLB-best 21-13 since opening the season 20-31 (through May 20).
“One of the most fun parts about this offense is we never feel like we’re out of any game or any inning,” said Walker. “It feels like no bullpen is safe. You talk about an identity, and those are the things we’re choosing to identify with as an offense.”