HOUSTON — Jose Altuve hit a two-run homer and an RBI single and Ramón Urías also went deep to back up a strong start from Luis Garcia and lead the Houston Astros to an 8-3 win over the Angels on Monday.
Garcia (1-0) got the win in his return after sitting out more than two years while recovering from Tommy John surgery. He allowed three hits and three runs with six strikeouts in six innings in his first start since May 1, 2023.
The game was tied with one out in the fifth when Yordan Alvarez singled before moving to second on a groundout by Altuve. Carlos Correa then singled on a grounder to center field to score Alvarez and give Houston a 4-3 lead.
Cam Smith singled with two outs in the sixth to chase Yusei Kikuchi (6-10) before stealing second base. Mauricio Dubón walked and Jeremy Peña’s second double of the day scored Smith to make it 5-3.
Alvarez added an RBI single in the eighth before Altuve’s homer made it 8-3.
Zach Neto hit a solo home run and Jo Adell added a two-run shot for the Angels, whose two-game winning streak was snapped.
Garcia retired the first nine batters before Neto homered to open the fourth inning. Mike Trout singled with one out before Adell launched his 31st homer into the seats in left field to put the Angels on top 3-2.
Kikuchi gave up eight hits and five runs in 5⅔ innings.
The Angels haven’t announced their starter for Tuesday night’s game at Kansas City.
But, in a reminder of the still-tenuous pitching depth the Dodgers have relied on for much of this first half, long man Justin Wrobleski came back down to earth in a five-run, 4 ⅔-inning outing thereafter, sending the team to a defeat that clinched a series loss to the Astros.
Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts is tagged out by Houston Astros third base Isaac Paredes while trying to stretch a double into a triple at Dodger Stadium on Saturday.
(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
In the big picture, this weekend has offered hope for the Dodgers’ long-term pitching plans.
On Friday, manager Dave Roberts said injured $136.5-million right-hander Tyler Glasnow is on track to return from his shoulder problem during next week’s road trip.
Before Saturday’s game, injured $182-million left-hander Blake Snell threw his second live batting practice of the week, striking out four of the eight hitters he faced in what is expected to be his final simulated session before going on a minor-league rehab assignment. Both he and injured reliever Blake Treinen, who also threw an inning of live batting practice Saturday, are lined up to be activated from the IL “at some point in time shortly after the All-Star break,” per Roberts.
Then there was Ohtani, who despite once again being limited to a short workload in his fourth pitching start of the season, was also once again dominant in a 31-pitch display.
After Isaac Paredes singled to lead off the game, Ohtani broke Cam Smith’s bat on a 96-mph fastball for a double-play grounder to second. In the second inning, Ohtani fanned Christian Walker with a slider, then Victor Caratini and Yainer Díaz on a pair of big-breaking sweepers — all while also touching 101 mph on the radar gun.
In his six total innings this year, Ohtani has given up just one run, one walk and four hits while striking out six batters on what was his 31st birthday.
And though it remains unclear exactly when he’ll be fully stretched out — or exactly how built up he will eventually get this year, coming off a second career Tommy John surgery — the Dodgers are inching steadily closer to having the rotation they envisioned this year: One with Ohtani, Snell and Glasnow joining likely All-Star Yoshinobu Yamamoto in a star-studded quartet the club has spent lavishly the last two offseasons to build.
“We can see a little squint of light,” Roberts said. “It’s taken a little longer than we’ve all expected or hoped for, as far as getting our guys together. So we haven’t gotten there yet. But we’re hopeful and excited.”
In the short term, however, the Astros have put a dent in the optimism the club had clung to among its stable of young pitching depth.
After Ben Casparius was knocked around in a historic blowout on Friday night, Wrobleski suffered a similar fate against Houston’s surging lineup. Upon entering the game at the start of the third, he quickly blew an early 2-0 Dodgers lead, giving up a leadoff single to Cooper Hummel and back-to-back two-strike doubles to Mauricio Dubón (who fouled off fastball after fastball before whacking a full-count heater the other way) and Zack Short (who got three-straight off-speed pitches, pulling the last one down the third-base line to score two runs).
Miguel Rojas, tapped to play third base Saturday in place of the recently injured Max Muncy, made matters worse by misfiring on a tough throw to first on a soft ground ball from Smith with one out, allowing a run to score. Then Walker, an unlikely Dodgers killer over his career, lined a two-out single to right to make it a four-run inning and a 4-2 Astros lead.
Wrobleski did eventually settle down, but not before Díaz homered at the start of the third to put the Astros up there.
That deficit proved insurmountable for the Dodgers. They made it 5-4 when Rojas homered in the fourth (he also had an RBI single in the second inning, and drew a walk in the fifth) but stranded a string of opportunities down the stretch, finishing the day one-for-five with runners in scoring position and with nine men left on base.
