Kikuchi has 11 Ks in Houston debut, Astros beat Rays 3-2

HOUSTON (AP) — Yusei Kikuchi shook off a rocky start to finish with 11 strikeouts in his Houston debut, and the Astros beat the Tampa Bay Rays 3-2 on Friday night.

Kikuchi — acquired from Toronto on Monday — allowed a double to Yandy Diaz on his second pitch and a two-run homer to Dylan Carlson on his sixth.

Carlson got his first homer in 125 at-bats this season and his first since joining the Rays in a trade from St. Louis on Tuesday.

Kikuchi quickly settled in after that, striking out his eighth batter in a row to end the fifth to tie an Astros franchise record. Justin Verlander was the last Astros pitcher to strike out eight in a row in 2022.

Kikuchi went 5 2/3 innings, allowing two runs and three hits while walking three. He fell two strikeouts shy of his season high and matched his season-low of three hits allowed.

The Astros took a 3-2 lead with two outs in the seventh after Yordan Alvarez hit a bloop single and was followed by a double from Diaz. Second baseman Christopher Morel mishandled the throw from outfielder Carlson, allowing Alvarez to score.

Josh Hader pitched a scoreless ninth to earn his 22nd save of the season and his 22nd consecutive converted save opportunity, matching the second-longest streak in franchise history.

Astros: P Verlander (neck) will throw a live batting practice session on Sunday, and if it goes well, he will start a minor-league rehab assignment, manager Joe Espada said. ... RF Kyle Tucker (shin contusion) is slowly making progress, but soreness lingers, Espada said. Tucker has been out since June 3 after fouling a ball off his shin.

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Rays RHP Zack Littell (4-7, 4.18 ERA) pitched seven scoreless innings in a 4-0 win over the Reds in his last start on July 27. Astros RHP Ronel Blanco (9-5, 2.95 ERA) has allowed four runs in back-to-back starts and hasn’t won a start since July 9.