Astros surge past Brewers 9-2 as Christian Walker and Jeremy Peña go deep

HOUSTON (AP) — Christian Walker hit a three-run homer and Jeremy Peña had a home run among his three hits to help the Houston Astros roll to a 9-2 win over the Milwaukee Brewers on Saturday.

Peña’s two-run shot made it 3-1 in the second and the Astros added three runs in the fifth to pull away after the Brewers got within 1. Walker's shot to the seats in right field made it 9-2 with two outs in the eighth.

It’s the seventh win in nine games for the Astros and snaps Milwaukee’s four-game winning streak.

Houston starter Peter Lambert (4-4) allowed five hits and two runs with three walks in five innings for the win.

Milwaukee’s Brandon Sproat (1-4) permitted six hits and five runs in 4 1/3 innings.

William Contreras gave the Brewers an early lead with a two-out RBI double in the first.

Cam Smith was on second base with one out in the second when he scored on a single by Jake Meyers to tie it.

The home run by Peña came with two outs in the inning to put the Astros on top 3-1.

Garrett Mitchell walked to start the fifth and moved to second on a wild pitch by Lambert with one out. Christian Yelich walked with two outs before the Brewers cut the lead to 3-2 on an RBI single by Jackson Chourio.

The Astros had runners on first and third with one out in the fifth after Sproat hit Walker with a pitch. Sproat was replaced by Carlos Rodriguez and Taylor Trammell hit an infield RBI single to make it 4-2.

Isaac Paredes then doubled to left field to score two more and put the Astros up 6-2.

Houston RHP Tatsuya Imai (2-2, 6.17 ERA), who was the starter in a combined no-hitter his last time out, starts in the series finale Sunday against RHP Jacob Misiorowski (5-2, 1.83).

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Houston Astros' Jeremy Pena, right, celebrates with Jake Meyers (6) after hitting a two-run home run off Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Brandon Sproat during the second inning of a baseball game, Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Karen Warren)

Houston Astros starting pitcher Peter Lambert delivers to Milwaukee Brewers' Christian Yelich during the first inning of a baseball game, Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Karen Warren)

Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Brandon Sproat delivers to Houston Astros' Jeremy Pena during the first inning of a baseball game, Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Karen Warren)

Houston Astros' Yordan Alvarez hits a double off Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Brandon Sproat during the first inning of a baseball game, Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Karen Warren)

Houston Astros' Jeremy Pena points to the dugout after hitting a two-run home run off Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Brandon Sproat during the second inning of a baseball game, Saturday, May 30, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Karen Warren)

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The end of California’s chaotic primary season for governor and Los Angeles mayor was approaching as leading candidates rushed to deliver their closing arguments days before voting concludes on Tuesday.

Former U.S. health secretary Xavier Becerra has called for “hot competence summer" in his bid for governor, promoting his decades of public service as evidence he has what it takes to be California's next governor.

Republican Steve Hilton pledged an end to a “bloated, nanny-state bureaucracy” during remarks outside the state Capitol on Wednesday.

Billionaire climate activist Tom Steyer told reporters this week in Berkeley, California, that he has made it his life's work to advance progressive causes, a mission he'll bring to Sacramento.

They are seeking to stand out in a field of roughly 60 names on a single gubernatorial ballot, regardless of party, under California’s top-two primary system. The two candidates who receive the most votes Tuesday will face off in the general election to replace Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, who can’t seek a third term.

The crowded race includes Democrats Becerra, Steyer, former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter, and Matt Mahan, the mayor of San Jose. Hilton, a former Fox News host backed by President Donald Trump, and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco are the most prominent Republicans in the race.

As of Friday afternoon, 13% of voters had cast their ballots. That included 13% of Democrats and 18% of Republicans, according to a tracker by Democratic strategist Paul Mitchell. The breakdown is unusual because Democrats in recent years have tended to vote early while many Republicans wait until Election Day.

Some Democrats have been waiting to cast their ballots to see if a candidate breaks away from the pack in the final days, or because they are unimpressed with the crowded field.

In Los Angeles, Mayor Karen Bass is vying for reelection against critics who question her leadership of the nation’s second-largest city, and had several stops planned Saturday to try and pull ahead of her competitors.

Those include Spencer Pratt, a registered Republican who gained a name on the reality TV show “The Hills," and Nithya Raman, a progressive city councilmember. The race is officially nonpartisan.

The contenders have been traveling across the state that includes roughly 23 million registered voters as they seek an edge over rivals. Becerra, Hilton, Steyer and Bianco will all be in the San Francisco Bay Area this weekend. Fresno and Los Angeles have also been popular campaign stops.

Becerra has been highlighting the more than 35 years he's spent in state and federal office.

“This is not a place for on-the-job training,” he said on a podcast hosted by political commentator Ana Navarro. “You better know what you’re doing.”

He’ll hit a text-banking event with Democratic Attorney General Rob Bonta in San Francisco and rally with the Service Employees International Union in San Jose.

Hilton has been selling himself as someone who would bring a fresh set of eyes to state government, reduce regulations, and bring down housing and energy costs. In an interview posted Saturday on Breitbart's The Alex Marlow Show, Hilton told Republican voters to support him over the other conservative candidate, Bianco, to try and ensure that at least one Republican moves forward in the top two candidates.

"Right now, there's only one candidate for change who can possibly get into the top two, and that's me," he said, “it's not personal.”

Otherwise he's pushed a message he has said is not ideological but commonsense, with a focus on cutting prices. Hilton will host a town hall in Silicon Valley on Saturday night.

Hilton has been cautious not to emphasize Trump’s endorsement. If he advances to the November election, he will need to appeal to voters outside his party to win in the Democrat-dominated state that hasn’t had a Republican governor since 2011.

Steyer is a billionaire who, on X Saturday, said he's the “only candidate who would support the billionaire tax in November." The candidate has framed the race as a contest between three candidates: himself, Hilton and Becerra. Steyer has described Hilton as “a hard-right Republican who’s endorsed by Donald Trump.”

Steyer on Saturday focused several social media posts on Becerra, repeating an argument he recently told a crowd of supporters at a sports bar in Berkeley. Becerra, “to my surprise, is a corporate Democrat," he said, referencing Becerra's acceptance of campaign contributions from Chevron.

“And the third person’s me,” he said. “And I am running because Californians can’t afford to live here anymore.”

Steyer’s headed to a campaign rally Saturday in San Francisco to put a finer point on his message to voters.

Mahan, meanwhile, will mingle with voters in Los Angeles, Porter gave a speech in Orange County, and Bianco will lay out his vision at a church in San Jose.

Bass is pursuing her second term after a tumultuous first, which included devastating wildfires and a rebuilding process that critics say is too slow.

The mayor has focused her reelection on the progress that has been made, such a decrease in street homelessness, which she leaned into on a livestream on Instagram Saturday before going after her opponent, Pratt.

“You have a failed reality TV star who wants to be famous,” she told two actresses on the livestream, before seemingly referencing President Donald Trump. “We know what it means if you put somebody who is a reality TV star in a seat of power.”

Pratt, who loss of his home in the wildfires became central to his campaign against Bass, is running a buzzy, social media driven campaign with populist messaging with promises to rid the city of disorder and dysfunction. On Saturday on X, Pratt threw out a few attacks at Raman, the city councilwoman, who both Pratt and Bass have, in different ways, tried to paint as too progressive.

Raman's campaign is partly focused on affordability and infrastructure. Both Raman and Pratt have attacked Bass for her response to the wildfires, though their recent posts have been directed at each other.

In a video posted to Instagram Saturday, Raman cited a recent poll. “After millions of dollars of spending against us, we are still here and we are still competitive," she said, before asking people to vote ahead of Tuesday.

A November runoff appears likely because there are more than a dozen names on the ballot.

Associated Press journalist Terry Chea in Berkeley, California, contributed to this report.

California gubernatorial candidate Tom Steyer speaks with reporters during a campaign event in Berkeley, Calif., Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Terry Chea)

California gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra speaks during a campaign event in West Hollywood, Calif., Thursday, May 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)