Isaac Paredes' key homer, Tatsuya Imai's solid start pace Houston Astros past Miami Marlins

No greater enigma exists in this Houston Astros starting rotation than Tatsuya Imai. The right-hander has looked unhittable at times and adrift at others in his first Major League Baseball season, raising question of what to expect each time he takes the mound.

For the rotation to realize its potential down the stretch will likely require Imai harnessing a consistency that eluded him in the first half. His first outing after the All-Star break showed the form that could help fulfill Houston's need for reliable starting pitching.

ASTROS INSIDER: How Tatsuya Imai tweaked his pitch mix to success

Imai threw six innings of one-run ball and Isaac Paredes hit a pivotal three-run home run as the Astros beat the Miami Marlins, 5-3, on Tuesday night to ensure a series win at Daikin Park. Houston moved to 49-54 and can attempt a sweep behind Peter Lambert in the finale.

Jeremy Peña hit a leadoff home run against Marlins right-hander Tyler Phillips, giving the Astros a lead they never relinquished. Paredes' swing in the fifth proved decisive, stretching the lead to 5-1, cushion enough to absorb Joe Mack's two-run homer off AJ Blubaugh in the seventh.

Jose Altuve hit into a 5-4-3 triple play in the eighth inning, the first triple play turned against the Astros since 2019. Otherwise, it was a largely successful night for Houston.

ASTROS 5, MARLINS 3

a-lined out for Conine in the 8th. b-struck out for Marsee in the 8th.

E_Sanoja (9). LOB_Miami 8, Houston 2. 2B_Conine (5), Stowers (17), Hernández (10), Sanoja (19), Peña (9), Spence (1). HR_Mack (9), off Blubaugh; Peña (8), off Phillips; Paredes (13), off Zuber. RBIs_Stowers (43), Mack 2 (28), Peña (27), Spence (1), Paredes 3 (53). CS_Trammell (1).

Runners left in scoring position_Miami 6 (Edwards 2, Hernández 2, Stowers, Marsee); Houston 2 (Peña 2). RISP_Miami 0 for 8; Houston 2 for 6.

Runners moved up_Lopez, Trammell. GIDP_Altuve.

DP_Miami 1 (Lopez, Edwards, Stowers).

TP_Miami 1 (Jiménez, Edwards, Stowers).

Inherited runners-scored_Zuber 1-1. WP_Zuber, Blubaugh.

ABS Challenge_Imai (Ball-Overturned to Strike); Imai (Ball-Overturned to Strike); Wade (Strike-Confirmed); Vázquez (Strike-Confirmed); Ruiz (Strike-Overturned to Ball); Mack (Strike-Overturned to Ball).

Umpires_Home, Sean Barber; First, John Libka; Second, James Hoye; Third, D.J. Reyburn.

T_2:31. A_28,748 (41,000).

Paredes cashes in mistakes

After making it 2-1 in the top of the fifth inning, the Marlins did not play a clean half-inning of defense. Their deficit grew as a result.

With one out, third baseman Javier Sanoja bounced his throw on a routine ground ball hit by Christian Vázquez, who does not run well. The error put Vázquez on base and ended Phillips' day after two trips through Houston's order. Right-hander Tyler Zuber replaced him.

Zuber induced a fielder's choice grounder from Peña. In a full count, he buried a sweeper that Yordan Alvarez swung over for strike three. The ball eluded catcher Mack to the backstop, however, while Alvarez sprinted to first base. He beat Mack's throw, extending the inning.

Paredes hit Zuber's next pitch, a hanging sweeper, over the Crawford Boxes. His 13th home run of the season extended Houston's lead to 5-1.

Important start for Imai

Imai took the mound two weeks removed from his last start at Washington. He ended the nominal first half with a 6.06 ERA in 13 starts. The Astros' pitching coaches and staff met with Imai during the layoff, manager Joe Espada said, to discuss "some changes that we need to (make) in the second half," mostly involving pitch usage.

"I think his mechanics have been pretty consistent throughout the season," Espada said pregame. "It's where he can go and steal a strike, where he can get some swing and miss. There is a much bigger sample size of information about how he's using his pitches. We just kind of wanted to prepare him for what the second half might look like."

What Imai's role during it could become a question if he does not improve, lending weight to his coming starts. His first was positive. Imai held the Marlins to four hits across six innings of one-run ball, striking out eight and walking three. A two-out walk in the fifth followed by Kyle Stowers' RBI double comprised the damage against him.

Imai threw 52% sliders against a lineup with six left-handed or switch-hitters. He induced 11 whiffs on 27 swings against the pitch and finished six of his strikeouts with it. He also used 12 splitters, something the Astros want to see more to augment his fastball-slider combination. Imai recorded seven called strikes or whiffs on the splitter.

The Marlins chased at just a 24% clip against Imai but whiffed on 37% of their swings. Fourteen balls put into play against him averaged an 87.3 mph exit velocity. Imai completed six innings for just the fifth time in his 14 starts with Houston. He has a 5.59 ERA through 58 innings.

Walker back in lineup

First baseman Christian Walker returned to the Astros lineup after two games' absence due to right hip tightness. Walker did appear Monday as a pinch hitter and remain in that game on defense, forecasting his start at first base Tuesday.

Walker slotted sixth in the lineup, the lowest he has batted since March 23. He entered the game 7-for-41 with four extra-base hits and 15 strikeouts in July. LaMonte Wade Jr. batted fifth, allowing the Astros to break up three left-handed hitters in the final five spots of the order.

Wade and Walker helped create a run in the second inning. Wade drew a leadoff walk against Phillips. Walker grounded a single through the left side. Lucas Spence then delivered a one-out double scoring Wade and giving the Astros a 2-0 lead. Walker finished 1-for-3.

New faces in center field

The Astros are giving Spence a serious look since calling him up last Friday. Spence, who played just 17 games at Triple-A, has started five straight games in center field for Houston, including one in which he faced a left-handed starting pitcher. He is 4-for-17 with two walks and five strikeouts.

Spence recorded two firsts Tuesday in his first at-bat, driving a full-count sinker from Philipps over the head of right fielder Griffin Conine for his run-scoring double. It marked Spence's first extra-base hit in the majors and his first RBI, and it gave the Astros a 2-0 lead.

With Brice Matthews on the injured list, Spence and Taylor Trammell are the Astros' two leading center field options. Both hit left-handed. Another does exist. Cam Smith, who made his regular-season debut in center in the game Matthews left due to injury, did pregame work there Tuesday at Daikin Park.

Smith was absent from the lineup for a second straight game. Espada said the Astros were giving Smith "a couple days" to work on mechanical adjustments to his swing with their hitting coaches. He did not rule out using Smith again in center field at some point this season.

"I'd prefer to keep him in right," Espada said. "But we are preparing him to play some center if we have to. … I want him to get some reps there and just see balls off the bat, work on his angles and lanes."

If the Astros are to add an outfielder at the trade deadline, a stated objective of general manager Dana Brown, positional flexibility with Smith could expand their options for an upgrade.

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