ew out a runner at home plate in the first inning, but the Astros outfield assist was a game-changer.It changes the complexion of the entire game, Hinch said. Jake

MINNEAPOLIS -- After getting his first night off in more than a year, Jose Altuve looked as fresh as ever Tuesday night.The All-Star second baseman, who sat out Monday for the first time since June 15, 2015, went 4 for 4 and scored twice as the Houston Astros topped the Minnesota Twins 7-5.The four-hit game for Altuve matched a career high and raised his batting average to .361 as he puts his name in the AL MVP discussion.Hes the biggest piece of this puzzle, teammate Carlos Correa said.Correa drove in four runs, including a first-inning homer with Altuve on base. That snapped a drought of seven straight games for the Astros without a home run.Altuve was given the night off during Mondays series opener, ending the longest active streak in the majors at 202 consecutive games played. He didnt miss a beat one day later, and his third hit helped spark a three-run sixth for the Astros.The undersized star has reached base safely in 39 straight road games, the longest current run in the majors.He looked refreshed, Houston manager A.J. Hinch said. I dont think he ever has too much of a bad day. He came out with some fresh legs and the normal swing that he has. Hes just continuing a remarkable season and doing just about everything you could ask out of a player.Astros starter Mike Fiers (8-5) gave up three home runs -- he allowed four total in his previous eight starts -- but benefited from a good night at the plate from his offense. Fiers entered ranked fifth in the American League in run support (6.75 runs per game).No matter the situation, you always need this kind of game, Altuve said. Everybody swung the bat today.Hector Santiago (10-6) took the loss in his first home game for Minnesota and second start with his new team. Santiago was acquired in a trade with the Los Angeles Angels for right-hander Ricky Nolasco and made his Twins debut in Cleveland.Like a lot of other pitchers, Santiago had trouble getting Altuve out.You just try to throw it up there, make a good pitch and hopefully he can hit it at somebody, Santiago said. It just seems that every time he hits the ball, its somewhere where nobody is at.The Twins hit consecutive homers off Fiers in the fifth to take a 4-2 lead. Robbie Grossman hit a two-run shot to right, and Brian Dozier followed with his 23rd of the year. It was the 10th time this season Minnesota went back-to-back, the third-most in team history.Houston reliever Ken Giles allowed a run in the ninth but earned his second save in five opportunities this year. Minnesotas lineup finished 1 for 11 with runners in scoring position.ASSISTING FROM THE OUTFIELDHouston outfielders came in tied for the most assists in the majors with 35. The Astros added another, and it came at a crucial time.Center fielder Jake Marisnick threw out Trevor Plouffe at home plate following a single up the middle by Jorge Polanco. Houston catcher Evan Gattis fielded the throw perfectly and tagged Plouffe, preventing what would have been a big run for the Twins.That play kept it a 5-4 Astros lead, and Houston went on to build on that advantage in the next inning. Minnesota also threw out a runner at home plate in the first inning, but the Astros outfield assist was a game-changer.It changes the complexion of the entire game, Hinch said. Jake continues to find ways to contribute in center field. Staying under control, he kept the throw low. Great pick by Gattis, good tag at the plate, and a momentum-shifter that would have changed the game.TRAINERS ROOMAstros: RHP Luke Gregerson (left oblique strain) will throw an aggressive bullpen session on Wednesday, Hinch said. Gregerson could return as early as Friday.UP NEXTAL Cy Young Award winner Dallas Keuchel (7-11, 4.56 ERA) starts Wednesday for Houston in the third game of the series. Keuchel pitched a three-hit shutout his last time out against Texas. Minnesota will send Ervin Santana (5-9, 3.62) to the mound. Wholesale Air Max From China . The visitors took a deserved lead in the 16th minute with midfielder Yohan Cabaye curling the ball beyond Adrian from inside the penalty area. Air Max China . -- Whether Jeremy Hill deserves a prominent role in LSUs offence this early in the season is a matter for debate. http://www.cheapairmaxstore.com/ .Y. - Free agent outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury, fresh off winning the World Series with Boston, reached agreement with the rival New York Yankees on a seven-year contract worth about $153 million, a person familiar with the negotiations said Tuesday night. Wholesale Air Max . Each of Houstons starters scored in double figures as the Rockets improved to 2-0 against the Spurs this season, with both victories coming on the road. They also moved within 3 1/2 games of San Antonio (22-7) for the lead the Southwest Division. Discount Air Max . 4 Villanova with a 96-68 drubbing on Monday. Wragge hit 9-of-14 from behind the arc, matching Kyle Korvers school record for 3-pointers in a game set in 2003, as Creighton (16-3, 6-1 Big East broke a conference record with 21 treys in the rout. MINNEAPOLIS -- The decisive blow for Minnesota came on Ian Desmonds leadoff home run in the 10th inning for the Texas Rangers.The Twins essentially lost the game a lot earlier.Desmonds homer set up Sam Dyson for the save as the Rangers held on for a 3-2 victory Friday night, but the Twins hit into double plays to end the fourth, fifth and sixth innings against starter Martin Perez.Another way to let one go, manager Paul Molitor said.In the fifth, after Max Kepler sacrificed to move the runners up to second and third, Kurt Suzuki tried to bunt, too. Trevor Plouffe broke for home with the pitch on a suicide squeeze play, but the ball popped high enough in the air for first baseman Mitch Moreland to catch it and throw across the diamond for an easy out. Just the type of ugly mistakes that have made a bad season much worse for the Twins.Just one of those situations that came up. It didnt work out. We didnt get the ball down, Molitor said.After losing back-to-back games to the Yankees in New York on the last at-bat, including a six-run rally Wednesday against Bush and Dyson, the league-leading Rangers settled in for a series against the worst team in the majors.Dyson surrendered a leadoff single to Kepler, but he struck out the next two batters and notched his 17th save in 19 attempts. Matt Bush (3-1) pitched two scoreless innings for the win, which lifted the Rangers to a club-record 52-29 mark at the 81-game midpoint of their season.Its a much better number than being the other way around, Rangers manager Jeff Banister said.Flip their record, and its still three games better than the Twins.Plouffe tied the game for the Twins with a two-run home run in the seventh that spoiled Martin Perezs shutout bid, but Desmond took Fernando Abad (1-3) deep to start the extra session. Abad has taken the loss in three of his last four appearances, and his ERA has risen to 2.67, up from 0.47 a little over a monthh ago.ddddddddddddObviously that fastball wasnt where he wanted it, Molitor said. But hes still one of our guys at the end of the game that we count on.Ervin Santana turned in his third straight sturdy start for the Twins, though he needed 117 pitches to log 6 1/3 innings. Two of his three walks came in the seventh, when pinch-hitter Jurickson Profar put the Rangers in front with a two-run single off reliever Ryan Pressly. Santana struck out five and allowed only three hits.I felt great, Santana said.QUITE A SNAGByron Buxton made a running catch against the wall in right-center field to end the 10th for the Twins and keep the margin at one run.I just really wanted to get us out of the inning so I just did my best to try to get to the ball, Buxton said.DOZIERS DRIVESBrian Dozier singled before Plouffes homer, stretching his hitting streak to a career-high 13 consecutive games during which hes hitting .431 with 12 extra-base hits and 13 RBI. Doziers run of 11 games in a row with at least one extra-base hit ended as the longest in a single season in the majors since Chipper Jones had 14 straight in 2006, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.TRAINERS ROOMMiguel Sano played 3B in his return from rehab (hamstring), and he threw Adrian Beltre out with an off-balance, bare-handed grab of a slow grounder to end the sixth. Sano pumped his arm on the way to the dugout. With the RF experiment all but over, Sano will rotate between 3B and DH, Molitor said.UP NEXTRangers RHP Chi Chi Gonzalez (0-1, 9.00 ERA) will make his second start of the season Saturday afternoon. RHP Tyler Duffey (3-6, 5.59 ERA) will take the mound for the Twins in the middle game of the series, coming off a career-high eight innings in a win on the road over the Yankees. He gave up just two hits and one run. ' ' '