The game turned in the seventh inning. The Yankees scored five runs to break a 2-2 tie and defeat the Astros 8-3 at Daikin Park, extending their winning streak to seven games.
Austin Wells drove the decisive blow with a solo home run to right field, then added an RBI single in the ninth. Wells finished 2-for-3 with two RBIs and two walks. Jose Caballero contributed three hits including a fifth-inning homer, while Ben Rice collected three hits and drove in a run with a sacrifice fly.
The seventh inning unraveled quickly for Houston. Wells homered to give New York a 3-2 lead, then the Yankees loaded the bases and scored twice on walks. Grisham scored on Bellinger's bases-loaded walk, and Rice came home when Chisholm drew another free pass with the bases full.
Mike Burrows kept Houston close through five innings, allowing two runs on five hits with eight strikeouts. But reliever Kai-Wei Teng took the loss after allowing two hits and a run in just one-third of an inning. Fernando Cruz earned the win for New York with two-thirds of an inning of scoreless relief.
The Yankees improved to 17-9 and maintained their division lead. Houston fell to 10-17 after the loss snapped a brief respite from their recent struggles.