SACRAMENTO, CA – June 17, 2025 – The Houston Astros bounced back in emphatic fashion last night at Sutter Health Park, routing the Athletics 13-3 in the second game of their four-game series. Rookie sensation Cam Smith led the offensive charge with two towering home runs and a career-best four hits, as the Astros collected five long balls in total.
Astros right-hander Jason Alexander (1-0), recently claimed off waivers from the Athletics, earned the win in his Astros debut, delivering six strong innings where he allowed three runs (two earned) on three hits while striking out four against his former team. For the Athletics, JP Sears (5-6) took the loss, struggling through 3.1 innings, giving up five runs on five hits.
The Astros wasted no time putting runs on the board in the top of the first inning. After Jeremy Peña and Isaac Paredes walked, Jake Meyers delivered a two-run single to give Houston an early 2-0 lead.
Cam Smith launched his first home run of the night, a solo shot, in the second inning to extend the lead to 3-0. He wasn’t done, as he crushed his second solo homer of the game in the fourth, followed immediately by Mauricio Dubón with a solo blast of his own, making it back-to-back jacks and pushing the lead to 5-0.
The Astros continued their onslaught in the fifth inning. After a Yainer Díaz single, Christian Walker blasted a two-run home run, his 10th of the season. Later in the inning, Isaac Paredes hit a two-run single, extending Houston’s commanding lead to 9-0.
The Athletics finally broke through in the bottom of the seventh, scoring three runs, but it was far too little, too late. The Astros added two more runs in the seventh with a two-run home home from Cooper Hummel, his first as an Astro, and two more in the eighth, including an RBI double from Cam Smith for his fourth hit of the game.
Smith finished the night 4-for-5 with two homers, a double, and three RBIs. Mauricio Dubón also had a fantastic game, going 3-for-3 with a home run, a double, two walks, and three runs scored. The Astros pounded out 15 hits as a team.
The dominant victory improved the Astros’ record to 42-31, evening the series at 1-1 with the Athletics heading into the third game.
