CLEVELAND — Peter Lambert and Yordan Alvarez combined to make two runs feel like plenty Wednesday afternoon, as the Houston Astros shut out the Cleveland Guardians 2-0 at Progressive Field to take the series two games to one.
Alvarez did the damage in the first inning, launching his 11th home run of the season—a two-run shot to right center—after Carlos Correa opened the game with a double. That was all Lambert would need.
The right-hander, signed as a free agent in the offseason after the Astros declined his contract option, returned to the organization and turned in the best outing by any Houston starter this season. Lambert worked six innings, scattering three hits and a pair of walks while striking out eight. He did not allow a run. Cleveland put runners in scoring position just once against him, when George Valera reached on an Altuve fielding error in the fourth and advanced to third on a wild pitch, but Lambert bore down and stranded him there.
AJ Blubaugh followed with a scoreless seventh, inducing three quick outs on a strikeout, a flyout, and a groundout. Steven Okert worked two-thirds of the eighth before Enyel De Los Santos closed it out, finishing with 1.1 innings of his own. Cleveland managed just five hits on the afternoon and went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position.
Alvarez finished 2-for-4 with two RBI and now has 26 on the season. Correa went 1-for-4 with a double, his sixth of the year. The Astros went 1-for-3 with runners in scoring position and left six on base, but with Lambert dealing, offensive efficiency was a secondary concern.
The win moves Houston to 10-16 on the season. For the first time in recent memory, the Astros also got through a game without a new injury. The team heads home to Daikin Park for a series against the New York Yankees beginning Friday, with Lance McCullers Jr. scheduled to start the opener.
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