Yordan's pair of 461-foot homers help power Mexico City rout

MEXICO CITY -- The colors, sights and sounds of a bustling city and the welcoming culture, and tantalizing food that surrounded them in the day-plus leading up to the start of the Mexico City Series allowed the Astros some time to put their woes behind them, while offering some hope things could indeed start anew.

A new country, a new altitude and even a new player all paid dividends on Saturday night for the Astros, who slugged their way out of their five-game losing streak behind a pair of home runs by Yordan Alvarez and another strong outing from Ronel Blanco for a 12-4 win over the Rockies in the opener at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helú.

“I don't think it’s a secret we were having a tough go of it offensively,” Alvarez said. “I trust the talent that our team has. I told the guys, ‘This is going to be our beginning of the season.’”

? Everything to know about Mexico City Series

Houston bashed out a season-high-tying 15 hits, including a pair of Statcast-projected 461-foot home runs by Alvarez and a homer by Kyle Tucker. Alvarez and Tucker went back-to-back in the third inning, with Alvarez putting the Astros ahead, 3-2.

“It felt good to be able to come back there,” Alvarez said. “We’ve had games in the past where we fall down early and don’t have the opportunity to make a comeback. When I hit that home run, I think it definitely changed the dynamic of the game and gave a lot of energy to the rest of the guys, rest of the team, and we were able to continue scoring runs.”

Blanco (3-0) fell one out shy of pitching his fifth consecutive quality start to begin the season, holding the Rockies to two runs and five hits while striking out eight batters. He allowed a two-run homer to Ryan McMahon in the first inning, but didn’t let the altitude bother him the rest of the day. Keeping the ball out of play -- Blanco generated 21 swings and misses -- didn’t hurt.

“They told me before about the altitude,” Blanco said. “But playing in New Mexico in Triple-A, and playing in El Paso, helped me a lot to come here and feel a little bit more comfortable.”

Blanco left after throwing 102 pitches with runners on the corners and two outs in the sixth. Seth Martinez walked a batter and then struck out Ezequiel Tovar with the bases loaded to preserve the lead. What’s more, Bryan Abreu had his best performance of the season with three strikeouts in the seventh.

In a game filled with encouraging developments, manager Joe Espada said Blanco’s start and the Astros’ at-bats with runners in scoring position stood out. Houston, which was 5-for-34 with runners in scoring position during its five-game skid, went 6-for-12. That even included two hits by struggling first baseman José Abreu -- his first two with runners in scoring position all season after an 0-for-19 start.

“We had a lot of at-bats with runners in scoring position with the infield in and we used the whole field,” Espada said. “I thought our at-bats were really good and that was very good to see today.”

Abreu’s poor start has cost him playing time, and the Astros called up Trey Cabbage to be the 27th man in the Mexico City Series and put him straight in the lineup. Cabbage, who can play first, started in left field and got Houston on the board with an RBI double in the second.

“We got a really good squad here,” Cabbage said. “We just had a couple of bumps in the road and I was glad I could come in and provide a little spark, and it was really awesome to see.”

The overwhelming majority of the crowd was in Astros orange, which also helped Houston feel at home despite being the visiting team. The reception the team has received in Mexico City is great, but the results are what mattered on this day.

“Everything clicked today,” utility player Mauricio Dubón said. “Everybody hit. Everybody pitched. Blanco did a heck of a job. Big man over there demolished two home runs. That’s our team.

“When everything clicks, we’re pretty dangerous.”