Valdez follows up no-hit bid with 5 2/3 strong innings as AL West-leading Astros beat Rays 6-1

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Framber Valdez followed up his no-hit bid with 5 2/3 strong innings, and the AL West-leading Houston Astros won their six straight game by beating the Tampa Bay Rays 6-1 on Monday night.

Alex Bregman and Yainer Diaz homered for the Astros, who lead the division by one-half game over idle Seattle.

Valdez (12-5) improved to 7-0 with a 2.68 ERA in his last nine starts after allowing three hits, one walk and striking out nine. The lefty was pulled after walking Yandy Díaz on his 101st pitch.

“Framber’s curve ball has been a game-changer for him the last couple of outings,” Houston manager Joe Espada said. “It’s gotten better with time. We’re asking him to use it more and he’s been working hard to try and get the location with it.”

Valdez came within one out of his second career no-hitter in his previous start at Texas on Aug. 6 when Corey Seager homered with two outs in the ninth. The Rays got their first hit with one out in the first on a single by Dylan Carlson.

“Concentration and focus,” Valdez said through a translator. “When you’re focused, you’re locked in, When you do that and work hard, and you’re going to have good results,”

Rays manager Kevin Cash said Valdez evolved during the game.

“Talented in the fact that he can evolve throughout the course of the game,” Cash said. “Change ups early. Then he seemed like he went to the breaking ball. Breaking ball creates a ton of depth. Kind of spotted the fastball just enough to keep us honest. And then had both the off speed pitches where (they) kept us off balance.”

Tayler Scott and Kaleb Ort completed a four-hitter.

Bregman hit a first-inning solo shot, and Yainer Diaz had a three-run drive during a four-run third against Taj Bradley (6-7) as the Astros took a 5-0 lead. Yordan Alvarez picked up his ninth RBI over the last seven games with a run-scoring single in the third.

Bregman has homered in three straight games.

“Bradley’s tough,” Espada said “You can’t miss pitches when good pitchers make mistakes, and I thought we took advantage of some of those mistakes.”

Bradley gave up six runs and eight hits over 4 1/3 innings in losing his third consecutive start. The right-hander had gone 5-0 in eight starts prior to the current skid.

Tampa Bay’s Taylor Walls tripled in the third when right fielder Pedro León overran his fly ball down the line and scored on José Caballero’s sacrifice fly.

Walls, who entered hitting, .153, also doubled off Valdez in the fifth.

The Rays have lost five of seven to drop back to .500 at 59-59.

Houston’s Jose Altuve had two hits and moved past Jeff Bagwell into second place in franchise history with 623 multi-hit games. Only Craig Biggio, with 841, has more.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Astros: RHP Justin Verlander (neck) will make his second minor league rehab start this week and could rejoin the rotation after that.

Astros LHP Yusei Kikuchi (5-9, 4.62 ERA) and Rays RHP Shane Baz (0-1. 4.30 ERA) are Tuesday night’s starters. Kikuchi is 1-0 with 19 strikeouts over 11 innings in two starts with Houston since being acquired from Toronto.

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