Astros Crush Orioles 23-2 Behind Three Yordan Alvarez Home Runs

The Houston Astros are one of the best teams in baseball, while the Baltimore Orioles are one of the worst. Nonetheless, the level of destruction the Astros laid on the Orioles in their August 10th game in Baltimore was something to behold.

The Astros hit six home runs and scored the most runs in franchise history and Houston beat Baltimore 23-2. While there were several Astros with good games at the plate–they had 25 hits–rookie Yordan Alvarez was the most notable. Alvarez hit three of the six home runs and drove in a game high seven runs. But since joining the team in June, Alvarez has been putting up big numbers. In just 45 games, Alvarez has hit 17 home runs and driven in 51, while hitting .353. His on base percentage is .432, slugging percentage is .743, and his OPS is 1.175. The Astros are 8-0 in August, and Alvarez is hitting a whopping .469 (15 for 32) with five homers and 15 RBIs in the month.

The Astros have a very solid starting rotation, made more so with the acquisition of Zack Greinke and Aaron Sanchez before the trade deadline (Sanchez was horrible for Toronto but is 2-0 with an 0.82 ERA for Houston; he was the winning pitcher in the 23-2 rout). Put that pitching in with a powerful offense–the Astros are at or near the top in the American League in most offensive categories– and you have a club that is highly likely to go deep into the playoffs, and one that strikes fear into the hearts of potential opponents.