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Houston Astros at Tampa Bay Rays

Sun Sep 131:40 PM ETSt. Petersburg, FL
By JR·1 min read
Astros(75-75)
Rays(90-59)
4—14
FINAL

TLDR: Tampa Bay finished off a three-game sweep of Houston at the Trop, and the Astros left Florida with a division lead that's suddenly down to 1.5 games with 12 to play.

FINAL · SUN SEP 13, 5:40 PM
Astros
(75-75)
LLLWL
4
Rays
(90-59)
WWWLW
14
Final123456789RHE
HOU
000002020441
TB
30422030—14150

Freddy Peralta tossed 5 hitless innings and Tampa Bay's lineup did the rest, blowing the game open with home runs from Palacios, Aranda (twice) and Fortes to complete a three-game sweep of Houston. The Astros got a late one from Isaac Paredes and solo shots from Allen and Velazquez, but the sweep trims their AL West lead over Texas to 1.5 games with 12 left to play.

Houston Astros
  • Alvarez back from ankle injury, drew a walk
  • Paredes' 2-run homer was his 40th at the Trop
  • Allen, Velazquez solo shots in the 8th
  • Wesneski allowed 7 runs in only 3 innings
  • Alvarez managed just 2 plate appearances before exiting
  • Swept, division lead now down to 1.5 games
Tampa Bay Rays
  • Peralta worked 5 hitless innings to close the sweep
  • Aranda's 2nd career multi-homer game
  • Third-and-fourth-inning power outburst put it away early
  • Bullpen surrendered 4 runs in relief after Peralta exited
  • Playoff spot already clinched, less urgency late in the blowout

Freddy Peralta took the ball looking to close out the set and delivered exactly that, working 5 hitless innings while Hayden Wesneski (5-2, 3.70 entering the day) couldn't find his stuff for Houston. Wesneski allowed 7 runs, 4 of them unearned, across just 3 innings, with visibly reduced velocity compared to his last outing against Philadelphia.

Hayden Wesneski
Hayden Wesneski
(6-2)·3.25 ERA
Sep 8 @ Phillies
W
6.0IP
3ER
3K
0BB
82P
09/13 Lineup
Freddy Peralta
Freddy Peralta
(10-11)·4.42 ERA
Sep 8 @ Braves
W
6.0IP
1ER
2K
1BB
92P
09/13 Lineup

Yordan Alvarez was back in the Astros' lineup after turning his ankle the week before, but his return amounted to two plate appearances and a walk before he was pulled in the sixth. Houston's bullpen had already worked overtime in the series' first two losses, and Sunday's finale piled on more innings for a unit that had nothing left to give.

None of it mattered much against a Rays team that had already clinched a playoff berth and simply kept hitting. Tampa Bay entered the day priced as a heavy home favorite, and by the time the third and fourth innings were finished, that price looked like it hadn't gone far enough.

Richie Palacios opened the floodgates with a three-run homer in the third, and Jonathan Aranda followed with the first of two home runs on the day, his second career multi-homer game. Nick Fortes added a two-run shot in the fifth to push the lead to 11-0 before Houston finally got on the board with an Isaac Paredes two-run blast in the sixth — his 40th career homer at Tropicana Field.

Houston Astros
(75-75)
09/13L@Rays4-14
09/12L@Rays2-3
09/11L@Rays1-3
09/10W@Phillies2-1
09/09L@Phillies7-11
Tampa Bay Rays
(90-59)
09/13WvsAstros14-4
09/12WvsAstros3-2
09/11WvsAstros3-1
09/10L@Braves1-3
09/09W@Braves7-2

Houston still salvaged a bit of pride late, with Nick Allen and Nelson Velazquez both going deep in the eighth off Tampa Bay's bullpen, but by then the outcome had been decided for two hours. The Astros now head to Kansas City after an off day, needing to find answers fast with the Rangers suddenly within shouting distance.

Astros 4, Rays 14: Final Score & Odds Recap — Rays Complete Sweep, Astros' AL West Cushion Shrinks To 1.5