WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Yordan Alvarez launched his first home run of the spring, a three-run blast in the sixth inning, and Ryan Weiss continued strengthening his case for a rotation spot as the Houston Astros defeated the New York Mets 8–2 Saturday at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches.
Weiss started and delivered 4⅓ scoreless innings, allowing two hits and one walk while striking out one. The right-hander has now logged 9⅔ innings this spring with a 0.93 ERA, giving the Astros a legitimate decision to make when finalizing the back end of the rotation.
Houston struck first in the opening inning. Taylor Trammell worked a walk, stole second, and scored on a Yordan Alvarez single to give the Astros a 1–0 lead.
The biggest swing came in the sixth. Carlos Pérez and Jax Biggers both drew walks against Saul Garcia before Alvarez turned on a pitch and drove it to right field for a three-run homer, extending Houston’s lead to 4–1.
The Astros continued to apply pressure in the seventh. A chaotic sequence turned into two runs when Biggers stole second while CJ Alexander broke for home, producing a stolen-base double and pushing the score to 6–1. Joey Loperfido followed with an RBI single to make it 7–1.
Houston added one more in the eighth when Collin Price singled home a run, capping the Astros’ eight-run afternoon.
Peter Lambert handled the middle innings in relief, throwing three strong frames and allowing just one unearned run while striking out three. The non-roster right-hander now owns a 1.00 ERA this spring and continues to quietly make a case for a bullpen spot.
Cavan Biggio also made his spring debut following right elbow surgery. The son of Astros Hall of Famer Craig Biggio drew a walk and scored in his first plate appearance of the spring.
