Nelson Velázquez delivered the only hit the Astros really needed Wednesday night, and Hayden Wesneski made sure it stood up.
With the game locked in a scoreless tie in the eighth inning, Houston loaded the bases and then finally broke through when Velázquez lined a two-run single to center with two outs, lifting the Astros to a 2-0 win over the White Sox at Daikin Park. The hit came off Sean Newcomb and snapped open a tight, low-scoring game that had been defined by pitching and a whole lot of escaping trouble.
The victory gave Houston the season series over Chicago and pushed the Astros to 4-2 against the White Sox this year. It also nudged Houston’s lead in the American League West to two games over the Rangers, with the Astros holding the season tiebreaker.
Wesneski was the story for most of the night. In his seventh start back from Tommy John surgery, he worked seven shutout innings and allowed just one hit, while walking two and striking out five. He became the first Astros starter to get through seven innings since he did it himself on Aug. 10 at the Giants.
Chicago starter Davis Martin was just as tough for most of the evening. He held Houston scoreless for 5 2/3 innings, continuing a rough stretch that had seen him go 0-3 with an 8.16 ERA in eight starts since the end of June. That mark was the second-worst ERA among AL pitchers with at least five starts in that span.
Houston had a real chance to strike first in the fourth. Yordan Alvarez doubled and Isaac Paredes singled to open the inning, but Jose Altuve popped out, Daulton Varsho struck out and Taylor Trammell flied out to left, leaving the Astros empty-handed.
The eighth was where everything finally tilted. After one out, Houston put three straight runners on before Varsho grounded into a fielder’s choice that cut down the run at the plate. That set the table for Velázquez, who crushed a single at 107 mph and sent the ball to the outfield, forcing Houston to turn the game over to Josh Hader with the lead.
The White Sox still had one last chance to spoil it after AJ Blubaugh replaced Wesneski. Tristan Peters opened the inning with a triple and Drew Romo followed with a walk, but Jeremy Peña threw out Peters at the plate on a fielder’s choice. Then Miguel Vargas grounded into a 5-4-3 double play to end it, another clean escape in a game full of them.
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