Diaz’s ninth inning homer snuffs out Jays’ rally
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TORONTO – Yainer Diaz’s home run in the ninth inning helped the Houston Astros eke out a 3-2 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday.
Diaz also had an RBI double in the second and Carlos Correa added a solo shot in sixth as Houston (79-67) earned a crucial win in the competitive American League West pennant race.
Jason Alexander was effective, scattering three hits over seven scoreless innings, striking out three and issuing a walk.
Steven Okert, Enyel De Los Santos and Bryan Abreu came out of the visitors’ bullpen. De Los Santos (6-3) earned the win as the pitcher of record when Diaz hit his homer and Abreu got his fifth save of the season.
Andres Gimenez and Nathan Lukes each had an RBI single in an eighth-inning rally to tie the game 2-2 as Toronto (83-62) mounted a late comeback against Houston for a second game in a row.
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Jose Berrios allowed two runs on five hits and a walk over 5 1/3 innings of work. He struck out four and was pulled after giving up the home run to Correa on his 81st pitch of the night.
Braydon Fisher, Louis Varland and Brendon Little followed him to the mound, combining 2 2/3 innings of scoreless relief. Closer Jeff Hoffman (9-7) gave up the homer to Diaz, taking the loss.
Takeaways
Astros: It was the 200th homer of Correa’s 11-year Major League Baseball career. He has 13 this season split between the Minnesota Twins and Houston. He also had a two-run shot in the Astros’ 4-3 extra innings loss to Toronto on Tuesday.
Blue Jays: Once again, Toronto’s offence came out flat against Houston. The Blue Jays couldn’t get a hit through the first five innings of Tuesday’s win and, although Ernie Clement got a hit in the second inning on Wednesday they couldn’t scratch together a run until Gimenez and Lukes’s singles in the eighth.
Key moment
Gimenez led off the sixth for Toronto with a single and then George Springer reached base on what looked like a fielder’s choice. Houston called for a video review, however, and Springer was ruled out to turn it into a double play and stifle the threat of a Blue Jays’ rally.
Key stat
The loss reduced Toronto’s lead over the Yankees in the AL East to 2 1/2 games but the Yankees were losing to the Detroit Tigers by seven runs when the Blue Jays’ game ended.
Up next
Kevin Gausman (9-10) gets the start as Toronto concludes its three-game series with Houston.
Cristian Javier (1-2) takes the mound for the Astros in the matinee.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 10, 2025.
© 2025 The Canadian Press