ARLINGTON, Texas — Ian Desmond hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning off Dallas Keuchel to send the Texas Rangers to a 4-3 victory over the Houston Astros on Tuesday night.
With the victory, Texas is 8-0 against Houston this year and has won 12 consecutive games over the Astros at Globe Life Park in Arlington.
Desmond went 2-for-4 and Jurickson Profar extended his hitting streak to 11 games, matching the club’s season high. Profar, making his professional debut at first base, also was 2-for-4, including a base hit in the eighth preceding Desmond’s home run.
Jake Diekman (1-1), who struck out two in an inning of relief in the eighth, earned the victory in support of Cole Hamels, who gave up two runs on four hits and four walks while striking out four over seven innings.
Carlos Gomez had a home run off the Texas left-hander, a two-run shot in the second, while Marwin Gonzalez had a single and double. Gomez’s home run was the 10th given up by Hamels in his last 10 starts.
Right-hander Sam Dyson gave up a one-out, run-scoring single to Luis Valbuena in the top of the ninth, but with the tying run on third, struck out pinch-hitter Tony Kemp and George Springer to end the game and earn his eighth save for Texas, which is 11-2 in its last 13 games and owners of the American League’s best record at 36-22.
Since taking over the closer’s job on May 18, Dyson has converted six of six save opportunities and has a 2.53 ERA.
The double play was Hamels’ friend. He induced three of them, including a 6-4-3 that erased Astros runners at the corners with one out in the seventh and the game tied at 2-2. The Rangers have turned a league-leading 81 double plays.
Keuchel (3-8) suffered the loss, giving up all four Texas runs on 10 hits and a wild pitch while matching a season-high in strikeouts with eight. His eight losses match his total for all of 2015 when he won the AL Cy Young Award.
The Astros, who entered winners of eight of their last 10, have lost two straight.
Ryan Rua had an RBI double and Bobby Wilson broke an 0-for-14 skid with a single and a solo home run in the fifth that tied the game.
Desmond continued to swing one of the major’s hottest bats. He has hits in 13 of his last 15 games and is hitting .412 during that span. In his last 44 games, the Texas center fielder is hitting .361 with eight home runs, 15 doubles and 36 RBIs after starting a frigid .109.
With two outs in the second, the Astros struck first when Gonzalez singled to left and Gomez followed with a two-run homer to left.
Texas answered with a run in their half of the second as Rua’s double scored Adrian Beltre from first.
NOTES: Texas RHP A.J. Griffin (shoulder soreness) will begin a rehabilitation assignment Thursday at Double-A Frisco. He will throw 45-to-50 pitches. … Rangers 1B Mitch Moreland was out of the lineup for a second consecutive game while battling a 5-for-56 skid. Jurickson Profar made his first start at any level at first for Texas. … The Rangers’ rotation was 7-0 with a 2.96 ERA during in the previous nine games entering Tuesday. … Houston’s Jose Altuve remained the leading vote-getter among AL second baseman for the All-Star Game, according to updates released Tuesday. Altuve had 893,332 votes to Kansas City’s Omar Infante (622,683). Texas SS Elvis Andrus was the only Rangers player ranked in the top five at his position. He was fifth, behind leader Xander Bogaerts of Boston.