HOUSTON, TX – May 13, 2025 – The Houston Astros secured a thrilling 2-1 walk-off victory over the Kansas City Royals last night at Daikin Park, evening their three-game series at one game apiece. Isaac Paredes delivered the decisive blow with a solo home run in the bottom of the ninth inning.
Astros left-hander Framber Valdez (2-4) turned in a stellar performance, pitching eight strong innings and allowing just one run on six hits and one walk while striking out seven. Bryan Abreu (1-1) earned the win in relief after a scoreless ninth. For the Royals, starter Kris Bubic was equally impressive, giving up only one run on six hits in 6 1/3 innings with nine strikeouts. The loss went to John Schreiber (1-2), who surrendered Paredes’ walk-off homer.
The game was a pitching duel through much of the early innings. The Royals finally broke the scoreless tie in the top of the fifth inning when Freddy Fermin singled to right field, scoring Maikel Garcia to give Kansas City a 1-0 lead.
The Astros responded in the bottom of the sixth inning. Jeremy Peña launched a solo home run to left field, his sixth of the season, tying the game at 1-1.
The tie held through the remainder of regulation, setting the stage for the dramatic finish. In the bottom of the ninth, with the score still deadlocked at 1-1, Isaac Paredes stepped to the plate to lead off the inning. On the second pitch he saw from Royals reliever John Schreiber, Paredes crushed a solo home run to left-center field, his fifth homer of the year, sending the home crowd into a frenzy and securing the walk-off win for the Astros.
Both teams received outstanding starting pitching, with Valdez and Bubic going deep into the game, keeping the offenses largely in check until the late-game heroics. The Astros finished with 7 hits, one more than the Royals’ 6.
The victory improved the Astros’ record to 21-20, giving them a chance to win the series tomorrow.
