Alimber Santa struck out Brandon Nimmo on a called third strike to end it, and the Houston Astros completed the fifth combined no-hitter in franchise history Memorial Day, blanking the Texas Rangers 9-0 at Globe Life Field.
It began with Tatsuya Imai, who walked three batters in the first inning and retired the next 18 in a row.
Christian Walker hit a three-run home run in the seventh inning, his 15th of the season, to blow the game open. Yordan Alvarez added a solo shot in the fourth, his 16th. Jeremy Peña, who was hit by a pitch twice and stole a base, drove in a run with a single in a four-run fifth. Nick Allen had two RBI, including a two-run single in the seventh when the Rangers committed two errors on consecutive plays to extend the inning.
Imai had been the rotation’s most glaring problem before Monday. He entered with an 8.31 ERA, four home runs allowed and 14 walks issued in just 17.1 innings across five starts, including a month-long stint on the injured list. In the first inning, it looked like more of the same: three consecutive walks loaded the bases before he escaped on a fly ball and a double play.
Then something clicked. Imai retired 15 straight Rangers before walking Brandon Nimmo to lead off the seventh. He finished having allowed no hits, walking three, and striking out two on 97 pitches. It was the best start of his Astros career.
Okert worked a clean seventh. Santa came on for the eighth and retired all three batters he faced, including a lineout back to the mound that Santa fielded himself. Then Santa returned for the ninth—no-hitter intact, Globe Life Field buzzing and got Joc Pederson on a lineout, Alejandro Osuna on a groundout, and Nimmo on a strikeout to seal it.
Santa, who shares a hometown with Alvarez—both from Azua, Dominican Republic—was known in the Astros’ system for his fastball, which can touch 98 mph, and a wipeout slider. He leaned on his breaking ball throughout the outing. He also wore a custom belt adorned with Santa hats, which felt appropriate for the occasion.
Rocker was charged with four runs in five innings for Texas. The Rangers have now lost four straight.
“There’s a lot of great things that happened tonight for our club,” manager Joe Espada said. The Astros are now 7-3 in their last ten games, tied with the Rangers in the win column, and 4.0 games behind the division-leading Athletics.
Game two of the Silver Boot Series is Tuesday night at Globe Life Field. Peter Lambert starts for Houston against Jack Leiter.
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