ession in which he started behind, but used expert skill to gather the chips to his side amid the unpredictability

HOUSTON -- During Houstons terrible start to the season both Carlos Gomez and Luis Valbuena struggled.The pair has turned things around since then and its helped the Astros do the same.Gomez had three RBI and finished a home run shy of the cycle and Valbuena hit a tiebreaking two-run homer in the eighth inning to help the Astros sweep the Seattle Mariners with a 9-8 victory Wednesday night.Manager A.J. Hinch thinks his team feeds off Gomezs energy.He had a spectacular night, Hinch said. He showed off a lot of his strengths. His athleticism, I thought he played good on defense, had a nice running catch in left-center. He doesnt have an off button ... he played a really complete game and were a completely different team when hes doing his thing.The game was tied at 7 with one on and one out when Valbuena launched a towering shot off Edwin Diaz (0-2) to the second deck in right field for his second straight game with a homer.All of his 11 homers have come since May 7.His powers always been there; hes got huge power to the pull side but a lot of that comes with getting a good pitch to hit and doing damage when he does get that pitch, Hinch said.Ken Giles (1-3) struck out two in a scoreless eighth for the win. Luke Gregerson allowed an RBI double to Robinson Cano with one out in the ninth before striking out Dae-Ho Lee with the bases loaded for his 14th save.The sweep moves Houston into sole possession of second place in the AL West behind Texas.I dont think we played particularly well here, Seattle manager Scott Servais said. They did. They played better than we did, at the end of the day thats what happens. For whatever reason after finishing up strong on the homestand just didnt carry it over down here.Houston led by five runs early before Cano, Kyle Seager and Lee all homered in the fourth inning to cut the lead 5-4. The Astros stretched the lead to 7-4 with a two-run sixth before a three-run homer by Seth Smith tied it in the seventh.Evan Gattis added a solo homer for Houston and Carlos Correa had two hits and an RBI.Seattle had runners on first and second with one out in the seventh when Smith connected off Michael Feliz to tie it at 7-7.It was a tough night for both starters. Houstons Mike Fiers allowed five hits and four runs in 3 1/3 innings.Seattles Wade LeBlanc also lasted 3 1/3 innings and allowed six hits and five runs -- four earned.Correa had an RBI double in the first and Gomez pushed the lead to 3-0 when he sent two runners home with a double later in the inning.Gattis opened Houstons second inning with his home run to make it 4-0.Gomez hit a triple, which landed on Tals Hill in center field, with two outs in the third to extend the lead to 5-0.Fiers had allowed just one hit when Cano sent the second pitch of the fourth inning into the seats in right field for his 20th homer to cut the lead to 5-1. Its the seventh season with 20 homers for Cano, making him the sixth second baseman in major league history to hit at least 20 homers in seven seasons.A walk by Nelson Cruz came next before Seager homered into the second deck in right field to make it 5-3.After a short coaching visit to the mound, Lee gave the Mariners back-to-back homers for the third time this season with his shot, which also came with two strikes, to get Seattle within one.TRAINERS ROOMMariners: RHP Felix Hernandez felt good after throwing 45 pitches in a simulated game Wednesday and will make a rehabilitation start for Class-A Everett on Sunday. If that goes well hell throw at Triple-A Tacoma on July 15 and return to Seattles rotation on July 20. ... RHP Taijuan Walker was placed on the DL on Wednesday with tendinitis his right foot. Servais said he will visit a specialist soon and theyll determine a plan for his recovery.UP NEXTMariners: James Paxton (2-3, 4.24) will start for the Mariners on Thursday when they begin a four-game series at Kansas City. Paxton allowed nine hits and four runs in 5 2/3 innings in a 12-6 win over Baltimore on Saturday.Astros: Doug Fister (8-5, 3.66) is scheduled to start for the Astros when they open a four-game series against Oakland. Fister looks to get back on track after dropping two straight following a seven-game winning streak. Colorado Avalanche Shirts .B. - Sebastien Auger made 44 saves as the Saint John Sea Dogs edged the visiting Acadie-Bathurst Titan 2-1 on Saturday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. Colorado Avalanche Gear . Once again Jordan Cieciwa (@FitCityJordan) and I (@LynchOnSports) go head to head in our picks. Last weekend at UFC Fight Night 32 my #TeamLynch got the best of #TeamJC by a score of 9-6. Let us know which side youre on for UFC 167 use the hashtag #TeamLynch or #TeamJC on Twitter. https://www.cheapavalanche.com/ .com) - Richie Incognito has reportedly been admitted to a psychiatric care unit in Arizona. Avalanche Jerseys China . The International Olympic Committee released the official list of bid cities on Friday after the deadline for applications had passed. The candidates -- all previously announced in their own countries -- are: Almaty, Kazakhstan; Beijing; Krakow, Poland; Lviv, Ukraine; Oslo, Norway; and Stockholm. Colorado Avalanche Pro Shop .4 million title. Ryan Riess emerged with the title after a session in which he started behind, but used expert skill to gather the chips to his side amid the unpredictability of no-limit Texas Hold em. Riess put his final opponent Jay Farber all-in with an Ace-King. SANDY, Utah -- Alex scored off a defensive miscue in the first half and the Houston Dynamo held on for a 1-0 victory over Real Salt Lake on Saturday night, handing the Utah club its first home loss of the season.Real Salt Lake (12-10-8) midfielder John Stertzer turned it over deep in his own end as a result of Ricardo Clarks pressure. Alex pounced on the loose ball and free path at goal, slotting a toe punch past goalkeeper Nick Riimando in the 36th minute.ddddddddddddRSL have gone winless in its last three and dropped to 8-1-6 at home in 2016.The Dynamo (6-11-11) ended a three-game winless streak and moved out of last place in the overall standings. Houston is 10 points below the Western Conference red line with five games left. ' ' '