HOUSTON (Interstat) — Taj Bradley struck out 11 over five innings and Kody Clemens drove in three runs with a home run as the Minnesota Twins defeated the Houston Astros 8-3 on Wednesday night at Daikin Park in front of 29,179 fans.

The Twins seized control early, scoring two runs in the first inning and adding three more in the second. Bradley allowed one earned run on four hits while walking none, improving to 7-3 on the season. The right-hander retired eight batters via strikeout over a stretch from the second through fourth innings, stifling the Astros after they had pushed across a run in the bottom of the first.

Minnesota opened the scoring in the top of the first. Trevor Larnach led off with a double to center field, and after a flyout and a strikeout, Josh Bell smashed his 11th home run of the season to center field, scoring Larnach. Bell’s two-run shot gave the Twins a 2-0 lead. Royce Lewis walked, Victor Caratini singled, and Ryan Kreidler walked to load the bases, but Tristan Gray struck out to end the inning.

The Twins expanded their advantage in the second. Luke Keaschall drew a walk after a replay review overturned an initial call. Larnach flew out, then Brooks Lee walked. Clemens followed with a three-run homer to right-center field, his 14th of the season, scoring Keaschall and Lee to make it 5-1. Bell walked, but Royce Lewis struck out and Caratini lined out to end the frame.

Houston had scored its lone run of the early innings in the bottom of the first. Jose Altuve walked, Yordan Alvarez singled, and Isaac Paredes grounded into a double play that allowed Altuve to score from third. Christian Walker struck out to end the threat. The Astros managed little else against Bradley through five innings. They put two runners on in the third on singles by Alvarez and Paredes, but Walker and Cam Smith struck out. In the fourth, Bradley retired the side in order with two strikeouts.

Minnesota added two more runs in the fifth. Victor Caratini walked, advanced to second on a passed ball after Ryan Kreidler struck out, and Gray popped out. Keaschall was hit by a pitch, and Larnach singled to center field, with the ball deflected by shortstop Raynel Delgado, scoring Caratini and Keaschall. Larnach was then caught stealing second to end the inning, giving the Twins a 7-1 lead.

The Astros mounted a rally in the sixth. Bradley had been lifted after five innings, and reliever Cody Laweryson entered. Brice Matthews walked, and Cam Smith reached on a throwing error by second baseman Kody Clemens, allowing Matthews to take second. Taylor Trammell lined out, and Yainer Diaz popped out on the infield fly rule. Joey Loperfido then singled to left field, scoring Matthews. Nick Allen followed with a single to right field, scoring Smith and cutting the deficit to 7-3. Laweryson allowed two hits and no earned runs in two-thirds of an inning.

Minnesota answered in the eighth. With one out, Keaschall hit his third home run of the season, a solo shot to left-center field off Astros pitcher Miguel Ullola. Larnach struck out and Lee struck out to end the inning, but the Twins had an 8-3 lead.

Houston threatened again in the ninth against Twins reliever Taylor Rogers. Nick Allen struck out, but Altuve singled. Yordan Alvarez flew out to center field, and Isaac Paredes reached on a missed catch error by first baseman Royce Lewis, with Altuve advancing to third. Brice Matthews then flew out to center field to end the game. Rogers pitched a scoreless inning with one strikeout.

Tatsuya Imai took the loss for Houston, falling to 5-4 on the season. Imai allowed five runs on four hits over two innings, walking four and striking out three. The Astros fell to 43-46, while the Twins improved to 42-46.

For Minnesota, Bell finished 1-for-4 with two RBIs. Larnach was 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored. Keaschall scored twice and drove in a run with his solo homer. Caratini went 1-for-3 with a walk. Clemens finished 1-for-5 with a home run and three RBIs. Brooks Lee was 1-for-4. Gray was 0-for-4, Kreidler 0-for-3, and Royce Lewis 0-for-4. The Twins had eight hits and stranded nine runners.

For Houston, Alvarez had three singles in five at-bats. Altuve walked twice and singled once. Loperfido drove in a run, and Allen had an RBI single. Smith doubled and scored a run. The Astros also finished with eight hits but left nine men on base.

The game took 3 hours, 16 minutes to complete.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Houston 6, Minnesota 5, and the ELO system had given Houston a 58.30 percent probability to win. Minnesota was installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus-1.5, and the total of 11 runs went under the over-under line of 8.