By COREY LONG
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) _ Jose Altuve homered, the Houston bullpen pitched 4 1/3 scoreless innings and the Astros beat the Texas Rangers 5-1 on Thursday in the last game before they return to their flood-ravaged home city.
Josh Reddick added an RBI single for the AL West-leading Astros, who avoided a three-game sweep at the hands of their instate rivals at Tropicana Field, where the series was relocated because of Hurricane Harvey.
Houston will have a previously unscheduled day off Friday and play a doubleheader Saturday against the Mets at Minute Maid Park. The downtown Houston stadium escaped major flood damage. Astros president Reid Ryan has said he hopes the weekend games “can serve as a welcome distraction” for the city.
For the Rangers, it was their first loss all year at the Tampa Bay Rays’ home park. They swept the Rays in a three-game series in June.
Chris Devenski (7-3) worked 2 1/3 innings in relief of Collin McHugh to get the win. Ken Giles pitched the final two innings for his 27th save in 30 opportunities.