Early fireworks
A pair of 2-run homers by Correa ignites premature start to Fourth of July weekend
As their starting pitchers have come up short in June, the bullpen and offense have compensated to keep the Astros atop the major leagues.
Carlos Correa hit a pair of two-run homers, and the relievers smothered the Oakland Athletics for a 6-1 victory Thursday that put the Astros 28 games above .500 at 54-26.
Correa led the show with four RBIs on his homers in the fourth and sixth innings, but Josh Reddick deserved second billing for his supporting role on three of the Astros’ four scoring plays.
With a single, double and sacrifice fly, Reddick raised his batting average to .538 (14-for-26) in the eight games since returning from the seven-day disabled list for a concussion.
Reddick is so locked in that for the second consecutive day he narrowly missed a home run. In the first inning, he drove a deep fly ball to right field. He stopped
before reaching second base and put his hands on his hips when he saw right fielder Matt Joyce raise his glove with the ball inside. Reddick waited a beat between the bases before tipping his helmet and offering a triple take on his walk back to the dugout.
“I just stood there in awe for a moment,” Reddick said. “It’s a lot more fun doing it than getting it done to you.”
The Athletics called up Daniel Gossett (1-3), a soft-throwing rookie who pitches to contact, June 14.
After holding the Astros to two runs in his last matchup, he appeared headed for another impressive start.
Gossett put batters down in order through three innings before the Astros took a 2-1 lead in the fourth. Reddick countered a shift by slashing his 16th double of the season to the right-field corner. With two outs, Correa drove a hanging curveball into the right-field bullpen.
‘Must-watch’ at-bats
In the sixth inning, Reddick singled, and Jose Altuve drove him in with a double. Then Correa squared up a ball in the middle of the plate for his 16th home run and 52nd and 53rd RBIs. He squared the ball so well that he took three slow steps to watch it pelt the faux-ivy batter’s eye high up, 435 feet away.
“We haven’t seen but two or three balls go up there,” Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. “His at-bats are always mustwatch.”
Brad Peacock has come to expect a cushion from the offense when he starts. Altuve, Correa and Marwin Gonzalez extended hitting streaks to eight games. The Astros are 8-2 in their last 10 games with 19 home runs and an average of 7.8 runs per game.
Peacock (5-1) spent a season-high 106 pitches to wiggle out of five tight innings. He fell behind often, starting 16 of 23 batters with balls, but stranded eight runners. He walked six and struck out seven.
“They were definitely making me throw my slider for a strike, and I wasn’t, so I had the six walks,” Peacock said.
His 33-pitch fourth inning was Peacock’s most laborious, but he surrendered only one run despite twice loading the bases. Adam Rosales chopped a ball that dragged shortstop Correa so far across the dirt that his only play was a forceout at third base. Ryon Healy scored to put the Athletics ahead 1-0.
Peacock has exceeded expectations since moving into the starting rotation. He lowered his ERA to 2.72 but acknowledged a deficiency.
“Just gotta go deeper into games,” Peacock said.
In June, injuries to four starters forced spot starts for minor leaguers who have been meager substitutes. Only once — Mike Fiers on June 21 against the Texas Rangers — in the last 11 games has an Astros starter completed six innings.
The Astros have relied on the bullpen more each month. Relievers had completed 35 percent of innings in April, 37 percent in May and 43 percent in June (through Thursday).
“We’ve asked a lot out of them this week and this month, and they’ve responded well,” Hinch said. “It’s a continual battle to fill the innings that are needed. They’re a little tired. We just came off an off day (Monday), and we’re looking forward to the next off day (Monday).”
Redemption for Hoyt
Oakland had two men reach second base against Astros relievers, but none got farther. Chris Devenski pitched two effective innings, Reymin Guduan struck out the side in the eighth, and James Hoyt got a needed confidence boost by closing out the game.
The comfortable lead gave Hoyt a chance to straighten a rocky stretch that included his being greeted with a grand slam in Tuesday’s 6-4 loss to Oakland. Among his last 11 appearances, Thursday was his second scoreless outing. His ERA in that span is 8.75.
Hinch made note of the respite Guduan and Hoyt offered their bullpen cohorts. The Astros are gearing up for a weekend series against the New York Yankees, the second-best team in the American League.
“(They) did exactly what you want guys to do with a five-run lead,” Hinch said. “Give rest to some guys that have been used a lot.”
hunter.atkins@chron.com twitter.com/hunteratkins35