The Houston Astros<\/a> defeated the Athletics<\/a>, 5\u20131, on Friday night at Daikin Park behind a four-RBI performance from Isaac Paredes<\/a><\/strong> and another strong effort from the pitching staff.<\/span><\/p>\n Isaac Paredes drove in three of those runs with a first-inning home run, giving the Astros an early lead that the Athletics never overcame.<\/span><\/p>\n The Astros wasted little time getting on the board. Jeremy Pe\u00f1a<\/a><\/strong> opened the first inning with a single, and Yordan Alvarez<\/a><\/strong> followed with a walk. After Christian Walker<\/a><\/strong> recorded the first out, Paredes launched his three-run homer to left-center field. The blast gave the Astros a 3\u20130 lead.<\/span><\/p>\n The Athletics threatened in the second inning. Tyler Soderstrom<\/a><\/strong> walked, and Henry Bolte<\/a><\/strong> and Zack Gelof<\/a><\/strong> followed with singles to load the bases. Peter Lambert<\/a><\/strong> responded by striking out Jeff McNeil<\/a><\/strong> and Darell Hernaiz<\/a><\/strong> to end the inning.<\/span><\/p>\n The Astros extended the lead in the third. Alvarez lined a single to right field, and Walker followed with an RBI triple. Paredes drove him in with a sacrifice fly, increasing the advantage to 5\u20130.<\/span><\/p>\n The Athletics finally broke through in the sixth inning. Brent Rooker<\/a><\/strong> connected on a solo home run to left field, cutting the deficit to 5\u20131.<\/span><\/p>\n The Astros relief unit shut the door from there. Enyel De Los Santos<\/a><\/strong> escaped a sixth-inning threat. Bryan King<\/a><\/strong> delivered a scoreless seventh. Josh Hader<\/a><\/strong> entered in the ninth and struck out all three batters he faced to secure the victory.<\/span><\/p>\n Paredes made the biggest swing of the night in the first inning. The third baseman finished with a three-run homer, a sacrifice fly, and four RBI. His early homer gave the Astros immediate control of the game.<\/p>\n Lambert faced a bases-loaded, one out situation in the second inning. He responded with back-to-back strikeouts. From there, he kept the Athletics off the scoreboard for three more innings. The escape prevented the Athletics from changing the game’s momentum.<\/p>\n De Los Santos, King, and Hader combined to allow no runs across the final 3 2\/3 innings. The trio recorded eight strikeouts and faced the minimum number of hitters possible. Only one Athletics batter reached base off them as a unit \u2014 Nick Kurtz<\/a><\/strong>. Kurtz led off the eighth with a walk against King. Two batters later, King erased Kurtz when he induced a side-retiring double play from Soderstrom. Additionally, Hader \u2014 returning from a 10-month injury absence \u2014 struck out the side in order to end the game.<\/p>\n The Astros struck out 12 times. Strikeouts are unproductive outs. In a game like this one, it did not matter, but in a close game, it could haunt them.<\/p>\n The Astros only collected two hits after the third inning. Again, in a 5\u20131 win, this is not a big deal. But in closer games, it could be.<\/p>\n The Astros continue their series against the Athletics on Saturday at Daikin Park. First pitch is scheduled for 3:10 p.m. Central.<\/span><\/p>\n The Athletics will start right-hander Kade Morris<\/a><\/strong>, who will be making his major league debut. The Astros will counter with right-hander Tatsuya Imai<\/a><\/strong>, who enters with a 2-3 record, a 5.52 ERA, and 28 strikeouts.<\/span><\/p>\nAstros \u2013 Athletics Game Summary<\/b><\/h3>\n
What Went Right for the Astros<\/h3>\n
Took Early Lead<\/h4>\n
Escaped Early Jams<\/h4>\n
Lights-out Relief Pitching<\/h4>\n
What Went Wrong for the Astros<\/h3>\n
Strikeouts<\/h4>\n
Limited Production after the Third<\/h4>\n
Quick Hits<\/b><\/h3>\n
\n
What’s Next<\/b><\/h3>\n
Main Picture:<\/h4>\n