Washington Nationals vs Houston Astros Box Score on Aug 23, 2017

The Sports Xchange
Aug 23, 2017

HOUSTON -- Mike Fiers produced his best start in more than a month, and Jake Marisnick, Max Stassi and Alex Bregman hit home runs in the Houston Astros' 6-1 interleague win over the Washington Nationals on Wednesday night at Minute Maid Park.

After allowing at least three runs and two homers in each of his previous four starts, Fiers (8-8) surrendered one run, four hits and one walk with six strikeouts in seven innings.

It marked his longest outing since working seven innings in consecutive starts in mid-July, and Fiers did not allow a homer for just the second time in his past nine starts.

Marisnick belted his 15th home run of the season with one out in the fifth inning off Nationals right-hander Edwin Jackson, giving the Astros (77-49) a 2-1 lead.

Stassi bashed his second homer of the season, a solo blast to left, off Nationals reliever Matt Grace with two outs in the eighth inning.

Three batters later, when Bregman clubbed his 16th home run, a three-run shot off Shawn Kelley, it marked the first time Houston scored more than three runs in six games.

Jackson (4-3) struck out just one, and Washington (75-49) finished with just two. Jackson allowed two runs on six hits and three walks in six innings.

Fiers hadn't logged a quality start since July 21 at Baltimore but was the picture of efficiency early, setting the side down in order in the second after overcoming a two-out single by Daniel Murphy in the first with a with a fielder's choice groundout from Ryan Zimmerman.

The Nationals did manage back-to-back hits with one out in the third, and with Andrew Stevenson, who doubled, on third base after a Howie Kendrick single, Wilmer Difo produced a sacrifice fly to center field that gave the Nationals a 1-0 lead.

However, after a leadoff single from Zimmerman in the fourth, Fiers faced just nine batters while completing the ensuing three innings. When he returned for the seventh, he led 2-1.

NOTES: Astros SS Carlos Correa (left thumb) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Fresno on Thursday. Although the club hasn't determined a precise timetable for how long Correa will remain on assignment, he is expected to spend at least a week with the Grizzlies. ... Nationals RHP Ryan Madson remains in Arizona undergoing tests to determine the extent of the right finger sprain that landed him on the 10-day disabled list on Aug. 17. Madson, 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA in nine games for Washington, did not accompany the team on its trip to Houston from San Diego. ... With Tropical Depression Harvey expected to wreak havoc on the Gulf Coast this weekend, the Astros will move the rehab assignments of RHPs Lance McCullers, Will Harris and Michael Feliz, plus LHP Tony Sipp from Double-A Corpus Christi to Fresno.