Astros break out in sixth inning to batter Pirates

Associated Press

HOUSTON

Rookie Henry Sosa allowed two hits and struck out seven over six innings, Matt Downs got his league-leading 12th pinch-hit RBI and the Houston Astros rallied for an 8-2 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday night.

Jose Altuve homered in the fifth against Charlie Morton (9-8) to tie it 2-2 and the Astros broke loose with six runs on a season-high seven hits in the sixth inning.

Downs pinch hit for Sosa and singled to left for the go-ahead run. Altuve added an RBI single, J.D. Martinez drove in two runs with a single, and Carlos Lee and Jimmy Paredes also had run-scoring hits in the inning.

Sosa, who walked one batter, got his second straight victory. He walked Ronny Cedeno to start the third inning. Cedeno was sacrificed to second and scored on Alex Presley’s long single to center.

Martinez also had an RBI hit in the seventh. He went 3 for 5 to lead Houston’s 13-hit attack.

Andrrew McCutchen homerd off Brett Myers in the ninth. McCutchen became the eighth player in Pirates history to get 20 homers and 20 stolen bases in the same year.

Morton had faced 338 right-handed batters without allowing a home run before Altuve’s blast. He pitched 5 1-3 innings, allowed four runs on six hits, walked four and struck out eight.

Houston threatened in the fourth when Morton walked leadoff batter Brian Bogusevic. He went to second on a groundout and took third on a wild pitch, but Sosa struck out to end the inning.

Astros starter Brett Myers pitched the final two innings. His wife Kim is expecting a child later this week and Myers likely will miss his next start. He is scheduled to return to the rotation on Tuesday.

Houston has never lost more than 97 games, a franchise mark it has matched three times. The Astros last lost 97 games in 1991.