The Astros had a chance to take sole possession of first place in the AL West Wednesday night. Instead, a four-run lead disappeared before Seattle rallied against Josh Hader in the 10th inning for a 6-5 walk-off win at T-Mobile Park.
Houston fell to 78-80 with four games remaining but stayed tied with Texas atop the AL West after the Rangers also lost Wednesday. The Astros own the tiebreaker over Texas.
Astros Build an Early Lead
Houston broke through against George Kirby with four runs in the third inning.
Nick Allen doubled with one out, and Jose Altuve singled him home to put the Astros ahead 1-0. The hit was the 2,515th of Altuve’s career, and he added another single in the ninth for No. 2,516. He is now two hits shy of George Brett’s 2,518 for 100th place on MLB’s all-time hits list. Yordan Alvarez followed with a double that sent Altuve to third, and Isaac Paredes brought Altuve home with a sacrifice fly.
Yainer Diaz then hit his 14th home run of the season, a two-run shot to left that scored Alvarez and extended Houston’s lead to 4-0.
Seattle Answers
The Mariners erased most of the lead in the bottom of the third.
Ethan Pecko allowed a leadoff walk to Lazaro Montes and a one-out single to J.P. Crawford. A wild pitch advanced both runners before Pecko walked Randy Arozarena to load the bases.
Dominic Canzone singled home two runs, and Julio Rodríguez followed with an RBI double to make it 4-3. Pecko was replaced by Josh Hendrickson after 2 2/3 innings, allowing three runs on four hits and two walks with two strikeouts.
Seattle tied the game in the fifth. Arozarena singled, stole second, and scored on Canzone’s RBI single to center.
Bullpen Keeps Astros Alive
Houston’s bullpen held Seattle scoreless over the next four innings.
Logan VanWey recorded the final out of the fifth before AJ Blubaugh pitched two hitless innings, allowing one walk and striking out one. Bryan Abreu worked a scoreless eighth, and Hader pitched a scoreless ninth to send the game to extra innings.
Houston’s offense, meanwhile, failed to score from the fourth through the ninth after putting four runs on the board in the third.
Diaz Delivers Again
Alvarez began the 10th at second base as the automatic runner, and Diaz brought him home with a one-out triple to right, giving Houston a 5-4 lead.
Diaz finished 2-for-5 with a home run, a triple, and three RBI.
The Astros were unable to bring Diaz home, leaving Hader a one-run lead to protect in the bottom of the inning.
Mariners Walk It Off
Hader returned for the 10th after throwing 19 pitches in the ninth.
With Crawford starting at second, Hader walked Arozarena before Canzone grounded out, advancing both runners. Hader then walked Cal Raleigh to load the bases.
Rodríguez drew another walk, forcing Crawford home with the tying run. Naylor followed with a first-pitch single to center, scoring Arozarena for the 6-5 walk-off win.
Hader threw 44 pitches over 1 1/3 innings, allowing two hits and two runs—one earned—while walking four. The 44 pitches were his most in an appearance since August 9, 2019.
Triple Crown Update
Yordan Alvarez strengthened his hold on the American League batting lead Wednesday, going 2-for-4 with a double, a single, and a walk. His average rose to .316, seven points ahead of Tampa Bay’s Chandler Simpson at .309.
The home run race could hardly be tighter. Alvarez’s 41 homers are tied for the AL lead with Pete Alonso, Junior Caminero, and Ben Rice.
RBI remains the biggest obstacle to the Triple Crown. Alvarez has 102, eight behind Alonso’s league-leading 110. With four games remaining, Alvarez will need a substantial closing surge—and some help from Alonso—to make up that ground.
Alvarez is trying to become the first Triple Crown winner since Miguel Cabrera accomplished the feat with Detroit in 2012.
The Astros and Rangers are both 78-80 with four games remaining. Houston holds the head-to-head tiebreaker, meaning the Astros remain in control of their path to the AL West title despite missing an opportunity to move a game ahead Wednesday.
Houston opens its final series of the regular season Thursday against the Athletics at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento. Peter Lambert (8-10, 3.70 ERA) is scheduled to start against Mason Barnett (1-4, 7.16 ERA). First pitch is at 8:40 p.m. CT.
Looking for your favorite Astros player’s music? Check out the complete Houston Astros Walk-Up Songs for 2026.
Photo by Seth Tsui/Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
