Historic Rookie Home Run Feat
Rookie Lucas Spence hits three home runs to keep Astros tied atop AL West
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Key Points
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Spence became only the third player in major-league history to hit each of his first three career home runs in the same game, joining Joshua Baez and Seby Zavala. He had only 40 major-league at-bats before the game.
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Spence said the feat was “really shocking,” adding that he had never hit three homers in a day and was “really just trying to hit base hits.”
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Christian Walker and Isaac Paredes also homered for Houston; Walker’s eighth-inning homer was his 27th of the season, and Paredes hit his 24th.
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The Athletics briefly went ahead after Jeff McNeil hit a three-run homer to tie the game in the third and Zack Gelof followed with a solo homer; Gelof homered again in the eighth to bring Oakland within a run.
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Lambert finished the regular season 8-10 with a 3.87 ERA in 28 starts. NBC Sports noted he had thrown 166 innings this year, compared with 22, seven, 109, 90 and 124 innings in the previous five seasons.
Rookie Lucas Spence hit three home runs in his first game as a starter, driving in five runs and leading the Houston Astros to a 7-5 win over the Athletics MLB. The victory keeps Houston (79-80) tied with Texas atop the AL West with three games left in the season, and the Astros hold the head-to-head tiebreaker advantage MLB.
Spence became only the third player in major-league history to hit each of his first three career home runs in a single game, joining Joshua Baez and Seby Zavala MLB. He had just 40 at-bats before the game after being called up the day before MLB.
From Call-Up to Historic Performance
Spence called the feat "really shocking" and admitted he had never hit three homers in one day CBS Sports. "I was really just trying to hit base hits," he said CBS Sports. His first three home runs came in the second, seventh, and ninth innings, with the seventh-inning solo shot serving as the go-ahead blow.
The 27-year-old's sudden power display stunned teammates and coaches alike. His unlikely emergence as a key power source gave Houston a critical boost in a tight playoff race Review Journal.
Astros Rally Past Athletics in Wild Slugfest
Christian Walker and Isaac Paredes also powered Houston's offense, with Walker hitting his 27th home run of the season in the eighth inning and Paredes adding his 24th MLB. The three-homer onslaught proved too much for Oakland to overcome despite a strong offensive showing of their own.
Oakland's Jeff McNeil hit a three-run homer in the third to tie the game, and Zack Gelof added a solo shot in the same inning to give the Athletics a brief lead Review Journal. Gelof homered again in the eighth to keep Oakland within striking distance Review Journal.
Lambert Struggles Early But Astros Survive
Starter Peter Lambert allowed four runs in just 2⅔ innings, leaving early in what turned out to be a high-scoring affair MLB. The relief pitching held up, with Miguel Ullola and Bryan Abreu combining to secure the win and close out Houston's crucial victory MLB.
Lambert's Injury-Plagued Season Ends
Lambert finished the regular season 8-10 with a 3.87 ERA in 28 starts NBC Sports. His innings pitched have been extremely erratic: he threw just 22 innings last year, seven the year before that, and bounced between 124, 109, and 90 innings in the three seasons prior NBC Sports. This year he reached 166 innings, suggesting a return to full health down the stretch.
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