Dodgers hit three homers in routing Astros

Chris Taylor had three hits, including a three-run homer in the eighth inning, and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the visiting Houston Astros 8-1 on Sunday evening. Mookie Betts and AJ Pollock also homered for the Dodgers (33-14), who avoided their first three-game losing streak of the season. Eight pitchers for Los Angeles combined to limit Houston to one run and four hits.

Chris Taylor had three hits, including a three-run homer in the eighth inning, and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the visiting Houston Astros 8-1 on Sunday evening. Mookie Betts and AJ Pollock also homered for the Dodgers (33-14), who avoided their first three-game losing streak of the season.

Eight pitchers for Los Angeles combined to limit Houston to one run and four hits. Victor Gonzalez (3-0) was the only pitcher to throw more than one inning and was credited with the win. Los Angeles remains 2 1/2 games in front of the San Diego Padres for the NL West lead.

George Springer homered for the Astros (23-24), who have lost nine of 11. The Seattle Mariners have won eight of 11 to pull within 1 1/2 games of Houston for second place in the AL West.

Houston starter Zack Greinke (3-2) went five innings, allowing five runs and eight hits. He struck out three and didn't walk a batter. Pollock hit a 74 mph changeup over the fence in left with two outs in the first inning for a 1-0 lead.

Dodgers first baseman Cody Bellinger, the 2019 NL MVP who came in hitting .156 in September without an extra-base hit, collected his second single of the game to start the four-run fifth inning. Taylor followed with a softly hit double down the right-field line to put runners at second and third. Following a one-out, two-run single by Enrique Hernandez that stretched the lead to 3-0, Betts lifted a two-run homer to right field to make it 5-0.

It was the third home run for Betts in five career at-bats off Greinke. Right-hander Brusdar Graterol started for the Dodgers and struck out three of the four batters he faced.

Josh Sborz also blanked the Astros for an inning before Gonzalez and Jake McGee combined for three shutout innings. The Astros got their run in the sixth inning on Springer's ninth home run of the season.

Alex Wood blanked Houston in the seventh, and Caleb Ferguson matched him in the eighth. Los Angeles closer Kenley Jansen, who blew a three-run lead in the ninth inning of a 7-5 loss to the Astros on Saturday night, pitched a 1-2-3 ninth.

--Field Level Media

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