BALTIMORE — The Astros’ newest left-handed bat has emerged from a miserable funk, and perhaps the rest of Houston’s offense has as well.
Jesús Sánchez snapped out of an 0-for-29 drought in emphatic fashion with a 5-for-5 night that included a third-inning RBI single as the Astros earned a 7-2 victory over the Orioles on Thursday night at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.
It was Sánchez’s second career five-hit performance, having previously accomplished the feat on Sept. 17, 2024, with the Marlins against the Dodgers.
“I don’t want to be selfish. … I could go into the same slump tomorrow,” said Sanchez, who arrived in a deal on July 31 just prior to the Trade Deadline, through an interpreter. “But I think I’m a good hitter.”
Christian Walker and Yainer Diaz each clubbed a two-run homer, and the Astros (70-58) ambushed Brandon Young (1-7) for seven runs in the first three innings en route snapping a four-game slide and increasing their AL West lead to two games over the idle Mariners (68-60).
It was part of an overall offensive awakening for Houston, which tagged Young for nine of its 12 total hits, six days after Young carried a perfect game into the eighth inning of Baltimore’s 7-0 win at Daikin Park.
“I knew what the team was capable of,” Sánchez said. “I knew the confidence that we have. We knew we were going to do a job and what we could do, so we were able to go out there and do it.”
The injury-plagued Astros came to Baltimore having been outscored by 28 runs (30-2) over their four-game slide. But perhaps a second shot at the same starting rotation over the course of the week could jump-start a club that still controls its division destiny despite losing 16 of their past 26.
“We’re going to hit,” Astros manager Joe Espada said. “I have a lot of confidence in our offense. It does help when you see a starter that sooner. Because it’s fresh in your mind and you can make adjustments quickly. But you’ve still got to execute your game plan.”
It certainly helped against Young, whom Espada said his lineup was too aggressive against last time.
Diaz’s 18th homer and Walker’s 17th both came on the fourth pitch of their at-bats on breaking pitches that caught the middle of the zone.
Sánchez saw six pitches from Young during his first at-bat before returning to a more aggressive approach in his remaining four trips to the plate.
“I thought we were more anxious the first time we faced him,” Espada said. “I thought we were more in control of our at-bats [tonight]. We hit some balls hard everywhere. Much better. That was a really good adjustment that we made.”
The 27-year-old Sánchez is still only slashing .215/.261/.308 since arriving in Houston, well below his 2025 Marlins numbers (.256/.320/.420) and his career .242/.308/.422 averages. He’s also been adjusting some swing mechanics since the trade in an attempt to hit fewer ground balls.
But even with a lineup that has struggled of late, Espada has also tried to assure Sánchez that the Astros are looking only for him to pass the baton.
“Telling me that I don’t have to put the team on my shoulders,” Sánchez explained of those conversations with Espada. “Telling me that we have other players like Carlos Correa, Jose Altuve and Jeremy Peña, and that those are people that I can go and get help from.”
