BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (Interstat) — Jason Alexander pitched six innings of four-hit shutout ball, Isaac Paredes hit a two-run homer in the first inning and the Houston Astros held off a late Minnesota Twins rally to win 2-1 on Tuesday, May 19, 2026 at Target Field.

Alexander, who entered with a 0-0 record after a rough outing his previous start, allowed no runs, struck out four and walked none in his longest outing of the season. The right-hander retired the side in order three times and faced only one serious threat, stranding a runner at third in the fourth inning. The performance came five days after Alexander was tagged for five earned runs in 4.1 innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Bryan Abreu earned the save, his third of the season, by recording the final out of the ninth inning. Abreu entered with two on and two out and got Byron Buxton to pop out in foul territory to third baseman Isaac Paredes, ending the game.

The Astros jumped ahead immediately against Twins starter Zebby Matthews. Jeremy Peña led off the top of the first with a single to center field. Paredes followed by launching a 1-1 pitch over the left-field wall for his fifth home run of the season, giving Houston a 2-0 lead. Matthews settled down after that, retiring the next three batters to escape further damage. He worked six innings overall, allowing two runs on five hits while striking out six and walking none.

Houston’s offense managed only three more hits the rest of the night, all singles, and never advanced a runner past second base after the first inning. The Astros put two runners on in the fifth but Paredes popped out to end the threat. Matthews retired 10 of the last 11 batters he faced before exiting after six innings.

Minnesota’s bullpen kept the game close. Travis Adams threw two scoreless innings, striking out one, and Anthony Banda added a scoreless eighth. But the Twins’ bats remained quiet until the bottom of the eighth.

With Houston leading 2-0, Bryan King worked a scoreless seventh for the Astros, striking out two. Steven Okert took over for the eighth and immediately ran into trouble. James Outman flied out, but Buxton doubled to left field for his ninth double of the season. Trevor Larnach lined out, bringing Josh Bell to the plate. Bell singled on a ground ball to right field that deflected off second baseman Braden Shewmake, scoring Buxton and cutting the deficit to 2-1. Kody Clemens followed with a single, putting runners at first and second, but Austin Martin grounded out to end the inning.

In the ninth, Houston turned to Abreu. He struck out Brooks Lee swinging, got Victor Caratini to ground out, then allowed a single to Orlando Arcia. Luke Keaschall was hit by a pitch, putting the tying and winning runs on base. Buxton stepped in and popped out to Paredes in foul territory to end the game.

Minnesota outhit Houston 8-5 but left seven runners on base and went 1 for 8 with runners in scoring position. Bell led the Twins with three hits and drove in the lone run. Buxton had two doubles. For the Astros, Peña had two singles and Paredes provided the only extra-base hit. Yordan Alvarez, Christian Walker and Jake Meyers each went hitless.

Attendance was 13,557 and the game lasted 2 hours, 17 minutes.

The victory improved Houston’s record to 20-30 and avoided a sweep after Minnesota won the series opener 6-3 on Monday. Minnesota fell to 22-27. The Astros evened the season series at one game apiece, with the rubber match scheduled for Wednesday.

Matthews took the loss, his first of the season against one win. He threw 87 pitches, 61 for strikes, and did not issue a walk. Alexander threw 74 pitches, 49 for strikes.

Paredes’ home run was the decisive blow. The Astros did not have another hit with a runner in scoring position after the first inning. Minnesota’s best chance before the eighth came in the fourth, when Brooks Lee tripled with two outs. Victor Caratini lined out to center to end that inning.

Twins manager Rocco Baldelli did not comment after the game. Astros manager Joe Espada also declined to speak with reporters.

The Astros continue their road trip with three games at the Chicago Cubs starting Friday. The Twins host Houston again Wednesday before traveling to Boston for a weekend series.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Houston 4, Minnesota 3. Interstat’s ELO system gave Houston a 50.30 percent probability to win. Minnesota had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus-1.5. The total score of 3 went over the over/under line of 8.5.