HOUSTON (Interstat) — Yordan Alvarez doubled twice and drove in two runs, Hayden Wesneski held the Athletics to one hit over five innings, and the Houston Astros shut out the Athletics 4-0 on Friday night at Daikin Park.

The Astros improved to 66-64 with the win, while the Athletics fell to 49-80. The announced attendance was 28,477, and the game took 2:54.

Wesneski earned the win, his third of the season against one loss. He struck out four and did not allow an earned run. The only hit off Wesneski was a line-drive single by Donovan Walton with one out in the top of the third inning. Wesneski worked around a pair of walks and did not allow a runner to reach scoring position against him. He kept the game scoreless into the bottom of the fourth, when the Astros finally broke through against Athletics starter J.T. Ginn.

Ginn took the loss and fell to 8-8 on the season. He pitched five innings, allowing six hits and three earned runs while striking out four. Ginn escaped early trouble in the first inning when Jose Altuve singled and Yordan Alvarez was hit by a pitch, but Isaac Paredes grounded out and Daulton Varsho and Christian Walker struck out to end the threat. The Athletics threatened again in the third inning after Walton singled and Henry Bolte walked, but Jeff McNeil popped out to first base to end the inning.

The decisive sequence began in the fourth inning. With one out, Paredes walked. Varsho followed with a double to left field, putting runners at second and third. Christian Walker then hit a sacrifice fly to center field, scoring Paredes and giving Houston a 1-0 lead. The Astros extended the lead in the fifth. Nick Allen walked with one out, and after Jose Altuve flied out, Alvarez lined a double to center field that scored Allen. Paredes followed with a double to right field, driving in Alvarez and making the score 3-0. That two-run burst was the most important part of the game, as it gave Houston a comfortable lead and forced the Athletics to play from behind against a pitching staff that was in control.

The Athletics did not go quietly, but they could not push a run across. In the sixth inning, McNeil singled and Carlos Cortes singled to left, putting runners at first and second with two outs. Lawrence Butler then struck out swinging to end the inning. In the seventh, Jonah Heim walked and Walton walked, putting two runners on with one out. Max Muncy struck out, and Henry Bolte grounded out to first baseman Christian Walker to end the inning. The Athletics finished with only three hits in the game, all singles, and did not score despite drawing six walks as a team.

Houston added an insurance run in the seventh inning. Raynel Delgado walked to open the frame. Nick Allen sacrificed, moving Delgado to second. Altuve flied out to center, allowing Delgado to tag and advance to third. Alvarez then doubled for the third time on the night, driving in Delgado from third and extending the Houston lead to 4-0. Alvarez finished the game 2 for 3 with two RBIs, a hit by pitch and three total doubles. Altuve had two hits and scored no runs but played a key role in keeping the Astros offense moving early.

Houston’s bullpen preserved the shutout. Bennett Sousa took over for Wesneski in the sixth and allowed two hits but struck out three, escaping without damage. Bryan Abreu worked the seventh and walked two batters but struck out one and got a groundout to keep the Athletics off the board. Steven Okert pitched a perfect eighth, and Enyel De Los Santos closed out the ninth. De Los Santos allowed a two-out error by Christian Walker in the ninth that put Jonah Heim on second, but Donovan Walton grounded out to end the game.

The Athletics bullpen also had some effective moments. Drew Rom took over in the sixth and allowed a single to Christian Walker before inducing a double play. He allowed the insurance run in the seventh on Alvarez’s double. Hayden Juenger entered in the eighth and recorded two outs, including a force out, and Elvis Alvarado pitched a scoreless inning with one strikeout in the eighth. The Athletics relievers combined to keep Houston from adding more runs after the seventh, but the early deficit was too much to overcome.

The Astros manufactured their runs with a mixture of walks, doubles and situational hitting. Their first run came on a sacrifice fly, and the next two came on doubles by Alvarez and Paredes. The fourth run also came on a double by Alvarez, this time scoring a runner from second after a sacrifice bunt and a fly ball had moved him to third. Houston finished with nine hits and drew four walks. The Athletics had three hits and drew six walks but were unable to capitalize with runners on base.

The loss continues a difficult stretch for the Athletics, who have now lost five straight games. The win snaps a brief two-game losing streak for the Astros, who had dropped the opener of their series against the Los Angeles Angels on Thursday and then lost an 18-3 decision. Houston rebounded behind Wesneski’s efficient start and a bullpen that did not allow an earned run over the final four innings.

The game also had some notable defensive and baserunning moments. In the first inning, Altuve singled and Alvarez was hit by a pitch, but the Astros could not score. In the second inning, Yainer Diaz singled for Houston, but Raynel Delgado struck out and Diaz was caught stealing second base to end the inning. In the third inning, Altuve singled again with two outs, but he was caught stealing second after Alvarez lined out to first base. Those missed opportunities did not matter because Houston broke through in the middle innings.

Oakland had a chance in the first inning when Bolte walked, but McNeil grounded into a double play. The Athletics also put a runner on first in the third and had two runners on in the sixth and seventh, but their best hitters could not deliver a timely hit. Ginn did enough to keep the game close early, but Wesneski matched him and the Houston bullpen took over from there.

The Astros will host the Athletics again on Saturday and Sunday to finish the series. Houston’s next 10 games include two more against Oakland, a three-game road trip to New York to face the Yankees, a three-game trip to the Mets and two home games against the Chicago White Sox. The Athletics will also remain in Houston for the next two games before returning home to host Minnesota.

Interstat’s game simulator projected a final score of Houston Astros 4, Athletics 3. Interstat’s ELO system projected Houston with a 65.60 percent probability to win. Houston was installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus 1.5. The total of four runs scored went over the over/under line of 8.5.