Yordan Alvarez hit two home runs and Jon Singleton added a two-run homer as the Houston Astros finished a four-game sweep of the Kansas City Royals with a 7-2 win on Sunday.
This is Houston’s fifth win in a row and comes after the Royals had swept a three-game series against the Astros at home in April.
“They kicked our butts early in the season in Kansas City when we were not playing our best,” Houston manager Joe Espada said. “But that’s why you play 162 and we are a different club. We’re getting closer to our goal and we’re playing with a different type of intensity and focus and we demonstrated that this series.”
Kansas City lost its season-high fifth straight game, falling into a tie with Minnesota for second place in the AL Central, 3 1/2 games behind the leading Cleveland.
The Royals had previously won the first game of a four-game series against the Guardians and tied for the division lead.
Cleveland and the Royals start another three-game series in Kansas City on Monday. “The whole series was frustrating,” manager Matt Quatraro said. “We didn’t come out of here with any wins. That’s what we play for, is to win every day. So that stinks.”
This was Alvarez’s sixth game with multiple home runs this season and his second this week. He had tied a career-high with three home runs in Wednesday’s 10-0 win over the NL East-leading Philadelphia Phillies.
Alvarez hit a home run off Alec Marsh (7-8) in the fourth inning, and Singleton’s homer made it 3-0. Alvarez hit his 30th home run of the season off Sam Long to start the sixth inning.
He is now one of only two players in franchise history, along with Hall of Famer Jeff Bagwell, to have at least four consecutive seasons with 30 or more home runs.
He nearly had another three-home run game on Sunday, but Tommy Pham caught his fly ball in the eighth inning on the track, just before the bullpen.
