Yordan Alvarez hits 1 of Astros' 4 homers off Rangers' Jacob deGrom in 4-1 win

HOUSTON (AP) — Yordan Alvarez hit his 15th homer and the Houston Astros matched a season high with four longballs in a 4-1 win over the Rangers on Saturday night that left Texas' Jacob deGrom stuck at 99 career wins.

Jose Altuve sent deGrom's third pitch of the game into the Crawford Boxes in left field for the 42nd leadoff homer of his career. Alvarez also went deep in the first.

Altuve left the game in the ninth inning with soreness on his left side. He took an awkward swing and didn't run after hitting a grounder to third base in the eighth.

Christian Walker opened the third inning with his 11th homer, and with two outs, Zach Cole homered to make it 4-0.

DeGrom (3-3) allowed four homers for just the second time in 257 career starts. The first time was on April 22, 2017, against the St. Louis Cardinals. He surrendered just one other hit over six innings and did not walk a batter.

Kai-Wei Teng (2-3) struck out seven over five scoreless innings. It was the third time in Teng's career he's completed five innings, and his 76 pitches were a career high.

After Steven Okert retired the side in order in the sixth, Joc Pederson drove in a run with a single against Enyel De Los Santos, but Bryan King got pinch hitter Andrew McCutchen to fly out to center with the bases loaded to end the threat.

Bryan Abreu stranded two runners in the eighth inning, and then got Ezequiel Duran to ground into a fielder’s choice with two on in the ninth for his second save.

The Rangers were 1 for 10 with runners in scoring position and left 13 men on base.

Astros RHP Peter Lambert (2-3, 2.76 ERA) faces Rangers RHP Nathan Eovaldi (4-4, 4.15) on Sunday as Houston seeks a three-game sweep of its in-state rival.

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Houston Astros pitcher Kai-Wei Teng claps after getting out of a jam during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Texas Rangers, Saturday, May 16, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Kevin M. Cox)

Texas Rangers pitcher Jacob deGrom delivers during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros, Saturday, May 16, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Kevin M. Cox)

Houston Astros' Jose Altuve runs the bases after hitting a home run during the first inning of a baseball game against the Texas Rangers, Saturday, May 16, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Kevin M. Cox)

Houston Astros designated hitter Yordan Alvarez (44) celebrates with Braden Shewmake (28) after hitting a solo home run during the first inning of a baseball game against the Texas Rangers, Saturday, May 16, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Kevin M. Cox)

Houston Astros designated hitter Yordan Alvarez runs the bases after hitting a home run during the first inning of a baseball game against the Texas Rangers, Saturday, May 16, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Kevin M. Cox)

CHICAGO (AP) — Davis Martin was so good Saturday night that manager Will Venable felt it was a typical performance for the right-hander.

That's the type of season Martin is having.

Martin struck out seven in six sparkling innings, leading the Chicago White Sox to an 8-3 victory over the crosstown Cubs at Rate Field. He allowed five hits and walked none.

“Davis was great. Similar to what we’ve seen in the past,” Venable said. “Really nice job with the slider tonight, protected it with the sinker. Was able to keep them off balance.”

Martin improved to 6-1 with a 1.61 ERA. He has 59 strikeouts and 10 walks in 56 innings.

The 29-year-old Martin has yielded one run in fewer in each of his last six outings. He is the first White Sox pitcher to six wins in his first nine starts of a season since Lance Lynn in 2021.

Martin said he enjoyed the charged atmosphere in his first career appearance against Cubs.

“Knew it was going to be a challenge, and so it was a lot of fun just going out there and competing,” he said.

Martin retired his first nine batters. He got some help in the third when center fielder Tristan Peters made a diving catch on Matt Shaw's sinking liner for the first out of the inning.

The Cubs got their first baserunner in the fourth when Nico Hoerner hit a grounder up the middle for a leadoff single. Facing runners on the corners, Martin struck out Ian Happ looking and got Seiya Suzuki to bounce into an inning-ending fielder's choice.

Martin surrendered a leadoff homer to Miguel Amaya in the sixth. The Cubs put runners on second and third with one out, but Martin escaped the jam by striking out Happ and Suzuki.

Looking at his rising pitch count and the situation in the game, Martin knew Happ and Suzuki were his last two batters.

“Emptying the tank, trying to execute pitches at a high level,” Martin said. “There's no more just trying to force contact so you can go deeper into the game. You're looking for a swing and miss. You're trying to get out of that inning.”

Martin is the team's longest tenured player. He was selected in the 14th round of the 2018 amateur draft out of Texas Tech University. He made his big league debut with the White Sox in 2022.

He had some promising moments last year, going 7-10 with a 4.10 ERA in 25 starts and one relief appearance.

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Chicago White Sox starter Davis Martin delivers a pitch during the first inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs in Chicago, Saturday, May 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Paul Beaty)