New York Yankees vs Houston Astros Match Player Stats On Jun 30, 2017

The Sports Xchange
Jun 30, 2017

HOUSTON -- Following a five-run sixth inning that swung momentum and secured the lead, Brett Gardner crushed a grand slam in the seventh as the New York Yankees cruised to a 13-4 win over the Houston Astros on Friday night at Minute Maid Park.

Gardner hit his third career grand slam with two outs in the seventh, doing so off Astros right-hander James Hoyt and extending the Yankees' lead to 10-3. Gardner finished 3-for-5 with a career high-tying six RBIs. The Yankees (43-35) belted out 14 hits, but the Gardner grand slam was their lone home run.

Ronald Torreyes finished 3-for-3 with two walks and three runs scored while Didi Gregorius and Austin Romine also recorded multi-hit games for the Yankees. After chasing Astros starter Lance McCullers in the sixth inning, New York punished relievers Michael Feliz (4-2), Reymin Guduan and Hoyt, who allowed his second grand slam of the homestand.

Right-hander Michael Pineda (8-4) earned the win for the Yankees, allowing three runs (two earned) on seven hits with three strikeouts over six innings. Houston (54-27) lost for the first time in eight games with McCullers on the mound.

McCullers had to battle throughout. He sidestepped a two-out walk to Aaron Judge in the first inning and two baserunners in scoring position in the second courtesy of a pair of errors, including his own errant throw, before allowing a run in the third.

Even then McCullers almost escaped unscathed, recording back-to-back strikeouts of Jacoby Ellsbury and Judge after Gardner reached on a leadoff double. But one meaty changeup to Gregorius enabled the Yankees to pull even at 1-1, with Gregorius rifling a double into the right-field corner to score Gardner.

The bottom fell out in the sixth, with McCullers surrendering a pair of baserunners before being lifted in favor of Feliz with one out. Feliz responded by allowing both inherited runners to score as the Yankees recorded four singles en route to a five-run frame that led to them reclaiming a 6-3 lead

NOTES: Astros RHP Mike Fiers will start the series finale on Sunday against the Yankees. The club had considered reinstating RHP Charlie Morton (right lat strain) from the 10-day disabled list by that date but will instead give him one more rehab start with Double-A Corpus Christi. Morton, placed on the DL on May 25, will rejoin the rotation next week in Toronto. ... The Yankees recalled INF Miguel Andujar and RHP Ryan Mitchell from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and optioned RHP Ronald Herrera to the RailRiders. New York also placed OF Dustin Fowler on the 10-day disabled list with a ruptured right patellar tendon. Fowler underwent surgery on Friday and is expected to require at least six months of rehab. ... In his first start since his demotion to Triple-A Fresno, RHP Joe Musgrove allowed one hit and two walks while posting seven strikeouts over seven scoreless innings for the Grizzlies in their 8-0 win over Albuquerque. Musgrove was optioned on June 23 after going 4-7 with a 6.01 ERA over 13 starts with the Astros.