CLEVELAND, Ohio — Canada wildfires contributed to a hazy atmosphere at Progressive Field on Friday, but it was Houston’s blazing speed that proved most difficult to see through, as the Astros outran the Guardians on the bases and in the field and handed Cleveland a 4-2 loss.
Cleveland’s lineup struggled to drop hits in against Houston’s nimble outfield, and when the Guardians did manage to connect, they ran themselves out of early scoring opportunities. The defeat marked Cleveland’s fourth consecutive loss to Houston, extending a trend that has seen the Guardians go 13-27 against the Astros since the start of the 2018 season.
It’s the Guardians’ lowest winning percentage (.325) against any American League opponent during that span.
Logan Allen (3-4), making his first start since May 31, took the loss after allowing four runs on seven hits with two walks and two strikeouts across six innings of work.
Astros rookie left-hander Colton Gordon (1-1) earned his first major league win, silencing Cleveland’s bats through five innings. The 26-year-old lefty, making just his fifth big league start, struck out five without issuing a walk while surrendering seven hits.
Houston lefty Josh Hader pitched a scoreless ninth for his 17th save.
The Guardians squandered an early chance to rattle Gordon when both Angel Martínez and José Ramírez were thrown out trying to stretch singles into doubles in the first inning. Astros left fielder Mauricio Dubón quickly cut down Martínez with a throw from the left field line, and then perfectly played Ramírez’s shot off the wall to throw out the sliding All-Star at second.
Manager Stephen Vogt said Martínez might have been a little over-aggressive on a ball that was not quite down the line, and Ramírez hit a ball off the wall that required a perfect throw to get him.
“But definitely making outs on the bases is not something that we want to do,” Vogt said. “Every out is super precious. We want our guys to be aggressive, but we need to be smart and it’s definitely something that we’re going to continue to talk about.”
Despite the baserunning miscue, Ramírez extended his on-base streak to a career-high 32 games, having reached safely in every start since April 30. He entered the contest batting .393 with 10 doubles, six home runs, 15 RBI, 11 walks, 12 steals and a 1.087 OPS during the stretch.
Carlos Santana went hitless in four trips to the plate, snapping his career high tying 14-game hit streak.
Allen found early success against Houston thanks to some stellar defensive plays by Ramírez and the Guardians’ infield. However, trouble arrived in the fifth inning when the Astros struck for three runs on an RBI infield single by José Altuve and a two-run bloop single to right by Christian Walker.
With runners at first and second, Altuve sent a grounder to third that Ramírez fielded deep behind the bag. His throw sailed wide of first base, and Astros speedster Jeremy Peña never hesitated rounding third, scoring without a throw from Santana.
Walker followed with a broken-bat pop down the first base line that landed just beyond Nolan Jones’ reach, allowing Altuve and Isaac Paredes to score for a three-run Houston advantage.
Vogt said one inning got away from Allen with a couple of walks and a few odd plays on the infield.
“Not necessarily miscues at all, but just (Houston) took advantage of them and that ended up being enough,” Vogt said. “But I thought Logan, despite a couple walks, did a nice job keeping it under control.”
Cleveland responded with a run in the bottom of the fifth on Will Wilson’s line drive single to left. Daniel Schneemann opened the frame with a base hit and advanced to third on Jones’ single before Wilson smashed a sweeper from Gordon into left field for his first major league RBI in 51 plate appearances.
The Guardians couldn’t build on that momentum, though, as Dom Nuñez, making his first big league appearance since August 2022 with the Rockies, grounded into a fielder’s choice. Martínez was then robbed on a brilliant diving catch in foul territory by Astros right fielder Jacob Melton.
Brendan Rodgers quickly restored Houston’s three-run lead with a solo home run off Allen in the sixth, his second of the season and the fifth homer Allen has allowed in 55 innings this year.
Allen said getting some work in the bullpen during his extended layoff helped to ease his transition back into the rotation.
“Just fell back right into the routine,” Allen said. “I threw a bullpen just to kind simulate like I was just making another turn. It felt normal. Felt good to be back in the starting rotation, for sure.”
David Fry cut into Houston’s advantage with a solo home run to open the sixth against Astros reliever Shawn Dubin.
The homer marked Fry’s first since being activated from the injured list following offseason elbow surgery, and his first since the dramatic walk-off blast that ended Game 3 of last year’s American League Championship Series against the Yankees.
Fry, who reached base three times including a single and a walk, said batting in the No. 2 spot in Cleveland’s lineup means taking the mentality of getting on in front of Ramírez, Santana and Kyle Manzardo.
“Just really trying to find a really good pitch to hit and if it’s not there, whether it’s a base hit or a walk, you’re just trying to find a good way to get on base for those big guys,” Fry said.
Peña finished with three hits for Houston, including a pair of infield singles.
Ramírez, a six-time Gold Glove Award finalist in his career, showcased his defense in the third inning by throwing out Melton on a slow infield chopper and later turning a double play by stepping on third base and firing across the diamond to nab Altuve.
Next
The series continues Saturday with a 4:10 p.m. first pitch at Progressive Field. Right-hander Gavin Williams (5-3, 3.79) will start for the Guardians while righty Hunter Brown (8-3, 1.83) takes the mound for Houston. The game will air on CLEGuardians.TV, WTAM 1100 AM, WMMS 100.7 FM, WARF 1350 AM (Spanish) and the Guardians Radio Network.
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