Astros 3, Mariners 2
SEATTLE -- George Springer, Evan Gattis and Chris Cater all hit home runs to lift Houston to a 3-2 win against the Seattle Mariners on Monday night, keeping the Astros in playoff position.
The Astros are now just 1 1/2 back of the division lead thanks to the Rangers' loss to the Tigers.
Carter's home run in the seventh inning broke a 2-2 tie and gave the Astros the lead for good. He sent the first pitch he saw from Danny Farquhar (1-6) deep down the left field line for his 23rd homer of the year.
Houston starter Lance McCullers (6-7) gave up a run on a two-out single in the first inning and a solo home run to Ketel Marte in the sixth, but shut down the Mariners the rest of the way. McCullers allowed four hits and two walks while striking out seven -- the eighth time this season he's struck out at least seven.
McCullers came out in the seventh but gave way to reliever Tony Sipp after walking Mark Trumbo to lead off the inning. Sipp quickly picked off pinch runner James Jones and struck out the next two batters to end the inning.
Luke Gregerson came on to strike out the final two batters for his 30th save.
Seattle starter Roenis Elias settled down after giving up a pair of homers in the first inning. Elias only gave up one more hit in his six innings of work and kept the Astros scoreless after the first inning, striking out five and walking two. It was the first time in five starts Elias finished the sixth inning.
Marte led off the sixth with a towering home run to right field, his second of the season, to tie the game 2.
The Astros struck first to take a quick 2-0 lead with a pair of homers in the first inning.
Springer, the second batter of the game, got the Astros started with his 15th homer of the season to right field. Two batters later, Gattis hit his team-leading 27th homer off the out-of-town scoreboard.
The Mariners scored a run of their own in the bottom of the first. Kyle Seager drew a walk and advanced to third on Robinson Cano's two-out single. Trumbo followed with a single up the middle to score Seager and cut Houston's lead to 2-1.
NOTES: The Mariners announced the hiring of Jerry Dipoto as the team's new general manager Monday. Dipoto resigned as the Angels' GM on July 1, a position he held since October 2011. Dipoto is the ninth general manager in Mariners history. ... Seattle manager Lloyd McClendon said he's not sure who will start Wednesday's game against Houston, but it's "highly unlikely" it will be LHP James Paxton. Paxton suffered a torn fingernail in his last start against Kansas City on Sept. 24, and McClendon said it's "50-50" whether he'll pitch again this season. ... The Astros entered Monday's game with a 17-11 all-time record at Safeco Field, the team's best mark at any active road stadium. ... This is the first contest of a six-game road trip for Houston to finish the regular season.