HOUSTON -- By roughing up Rangers starter Yu Darvish for the second time in a month Saturday night, perhaps the Astros have finally solved their nemesis.
The Astros, playing without three of their top injured offensive players in Jose Altuve, George Springer and Dexter Fowler, rocked Darvish for nine hits and six runs -- five earned -- in four innings to beat the Rangers for the seventh consecutive time, 8-3, at Minute Maid Park.
 
Singleton's 3 RBIs leads Astros over Rangers 8-3
 
Darvish (10-7) has allowed 19 hits and 12 runs (11 earned) in 10 innings in his last two starts against the Astros. He was 3-1 with a 2.30 ERA in his first six career starts against the Astros, coming within an out of a perfect game on April 2, 2013 and holding them to one hit in eight scoreless innings on Sept. 24, 2013.
Saturday marked his first career loss in four starts in Houston.
Scott Feldman (6-8), who spent most of his career with Texas, had his seventh quality start in his last nine outings, holding the Rangers to three runs and eight hits while striking out six batters in 6 1/3 innings. He's won consecutive starts for the first time since his first two starts of the season.
Darvish walked two of the first three batters he faced, and both scored -- Robbie Grossman scored on a Jon Singleton RBI single, and Chris Carter scored on an error by second baseman Roughned Odor.
The Astros maintained their 2-0 lead before erupting for four runs in the fifth inning against Darvish. The first six hitters of the inning for the Astros reached base. Singleton had a two-run, bases-loaded double, Matt Dominguez had an RBI single to chase Darvish and Marwin Gonzalez singled on the first pitch by Nate Adcock to make it 6-0.
Feldman gave up a two-run homer to Jim Adduci in the sixth and left in the seventh with one out and the bases loaded, holding a 7-2 lead. Josh Fields allowed a sacrifice fly to Elvis Andrus before striking out Daniel Robertson to end the inning.
Brian McTaggart / MLB.com
 

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