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In a game that saw the Houston Astros take down the Los Angeles Dodgers, 5-1, Jose Altuve made history with a milestone swing in the ninth inning.
His 373-foot solo homer off reliever Anthony Banda was the 245th of his career, breaking Hall of Famer Hack Wilson’s record for the most home runs by a player listed at 5-foot-6 or shorter, according to Christopher Kamka. The blast capped off a dominant weekend for Houston, who completed its first three-game sweep at Dodger Stadium since May 2008.
Altuve finished the day 2-for-4 with two RBIs, pushing his season total to 46. The veteran second baseman, who has now hit safely in five straight games with three multi-hit performances in that period, is batting .272/.332/.457 through 371 plate appearances across 87 games. He also has 48 runs scored and six stolen bases.
The game remained close until the later innings. After the Dodgers opened the scoring in the second on a two-out RBI double by Dalton Rushing, the Astros evened it in the third. Zack Short led off with a single, moved to third on Isaac Paredes' double, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Altuve.
Houston took the lead in the sixth when Short drew an eight-pitch, two-out bases-loaded walk off Dodgers reliever Will Klein (1-1), making it 2-1. In the eighth, Christian Walker and Yainer Diaz hit back-to-back solo home runs off Dodgers closer Tanner Scott, their 12th of the season and extending the Astros' lead to 4-1.
Jose Altuve’s record-breaking homer in the ninth capped the scoring. The blast was his 16th of the season and provided the final cushion in the Astros' 5-1 win.
Houston starter Ryan Gusto (6-3) pitched six innings, allowing just one run on four hits, walking one, and striking out one. He held the Dodgers’ top four hitters, Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, and Andy Pages, to a combined 2-for-12. The Astros' bullpen was dominant, with Bennett Sousa, Bryan King, and Bryan Abreu combining for three scoreless innings. Abreu struck out the side in the ninth to close out the win.
The Astros have now won 11 of their last 13 games and boast a league-best 24-8 record since June 1. Meanwhile, the loss was the Dodgers' first sweep since May 16-18 against the Los Angeles Angels.
