HOUSTON (Interstat) — George Kirby pitched seven strong innings and Julio Rodríguez hit a solo home run as the Seattle Mariners defeated the Houston Astros 3-1 on Monday night at Daikin Park.

The Mariners, who improved to 20-22, scored twice in the second inning and added another run in the third. Kirby earned his fifth victory against two losses, allowing one run on seven hits over seven innings. He struck out nine and walked two. Andrés Muñoz pitched a scoreless ninth inning for his eighth save.

Houston, which fell to 16-26, managed nine hits but stranded nine base runners. The Astros scored their only run in the fifth inning.

Seattle struck first in the top of the second. Randy Arozarena singled to right field off Astros starter Peter Lambert. Luke Raley walked, moving Arozarena to second. After J.P. Crawford lined out, Dominic Canzone singled to left field, scoring Arozarena. Cole Young then singled to right field, plating Raley and sending Canzone to second. Brendan Donovan flew out to end the inning with Seattle ahead 2-0.

The Mariners extended their lead in the third when Rodríguez led off with a home run to left field, his seventh of the season. Lambert retired the next three batters, but the damage was done.

Houston got on the board in the fifth. Jose Altuve singled to center field with one out. Yordan Alvarez followed with a single to right field that deflected off first baseman Josh Naylor, sending Altuve to third. Isaac Paredes then singled to left field off shortstop J.P. Crawford’s glove, scoring Altuve and moving Alvarez to second. Christian Walker grounded into a force out, and Zach Cole grounded into another force out to end the inning with Seattle leading 3-1.

Kirby settled after the fifth, retiring the Astros in order in the sixth and seventh. He allowed a two-out single to Braden Shewmake in the sixth but got Christian Vázquez to line out. In the seventh, Kirby set down Altuve, Alvarez and Paredes in order.

The most critical sequence of the game occurred in the bottom of the fifth. With the Mariners leading 3-0, the Astros mounted their only real threat. Altuve’s leadoff single and Alvarez’s deflected hit put runners at the corners with one out. Paredes delivered the run-scoring single to cut the deficit to 3-1. But Kirby induced a force out from Walker and another from Cole to end the inning with the lead intact. Had the Astros capitalized further, the outcome might have been different, but Kirby prevented Houston from tying or taking the lead.

Seattle’s bullpen took over from there. Trent Thornton pitched a scoreless eighth inning, striking out two and walking one. Muñoz closed the ninth, allowing a two-out single to Altuve but striking out Alvarez to end the game.

Lambert took the loss, allowing three runs on six hits over four innings. He struck out five and walked one. Steven Okert and Bryan King each threw a scoreless inning of relief.

Altuve led the Astros offense, going three for five with a run scored. Paredes finished three for four with an RBI. Shewmake had one hit in four at-bats. Christian Vázquez added one hit in three at-bats. Cam Smith went zero for two with two walks. Zach Cole, Brice Matthews and Christian Walker each went hitless.

For the Mariners, Rodríguez had two hits, including his home run, in four at-bats. Canzone and Young each contributed run-scoring singles. Arozarena had two hits, and Raley drew a walk.

The game was the first meeting between the teams since April 13, when the Mariners swept a four-game series in Seattle. The Mariners have now won five consecutive games against the Astros overall.

Seattle entered the game after losing two of three at the Chicago White Sox, including a 2-1 defeat Sunday. The Mariners went 2-4 on their road trip to Chicago and Atlanta before arriving in Houston. Houston came off a series loss at Cincinnati, where the Astros were shut out 5-0 on Sunday.

The attendance was 27,012. The game lasted 2 hours, 29 minutes.

Interstat’s game simulator projected a final score of Houston Astros 5, Seattle Mariners 4. Interstat’s ELO system gave the Mariners a 53.30 percent probability to win. Seattle was installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus-1.5. The total of four runs went under the over-under line of eight.