Dodgers Defeat Astros 12-2 Behind Andy Pages' Three Home Runs

The Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the Houston Astros 12-2 on Wednesday afternoon at Daikin Park in a game that featured two pitchers dealing with injuries. Dodgers starter Tyler Glasnow exited early with low back pain after recording his 1,000th career strikeout.

Astros right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. pitched through a broken fingernail on his throwing hand but struggled with command. The Dodgers bullpen responded with eight combined innings of one-run ball from six relievers. The offense scored three early runs off McCullers via wild pitches before Andy Pages hit a three-run home run in the third inning.

Pages added two more home runs later in the game for his first career three-homer performance. Manager Dave Roberts said the outcome was positive given the early exit by Glasnow. “Given the situation with Tyler, it couldn’t have been a better outcome,” Roberts said.

The Dodgers improved to 23-14 while the Astros fell to 15-23.

The Dodgers recorded 14 hits with half going for extra bases and went 5-for-12 with runners in scoring position. Shohei Ohtani snapped an 0-for-18 skid with two hits and a walk, including a double that started a five-run third inning. Freddie Freeman added an opposite-field double that drove in a run while using a new batting stance.

Kyle Tucker, Hyeseong Kim and Dalton Rushing each had two hits. Alex Freeland contributed a walk and an RBI single. The performance marked the most encouraging sign yet that the Dodgers are emerging from a recent offensive slump against Houston’s league-worst pitching staff.

945. His eight home runs rank second on the team and his 33 RBIs are tied for the major league lead. 412 in his first 19 games but hit three times on Tuesday before his three-homer game on Wednesday. “The at-bats, obviously, I thought today were very good,” Roberts said.

” Pages said he stayed confident in his approach even during his recent struggles. “Honestly, the bad streak really happened when I was hitting the ball well and hitting the ball hard, just not finding a lot of holes,” Pages said through an interpreter.

The victory gave the Dodgers a series win over the Astros and helped them finish the St. Louis and Houston road trip with a .500 record. The team will have an off day on Thursday before opening a homestand on Friday against the Atlanta Braves. Teoscar Hernández went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts and was removed early from the game.