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Astros Edge Phillies 2-1 on Smith's Ninth-Inning Homer

Houston Astros defeated the Philadelphia Phillies 2-1 on Thursday, September 10, 2026, with Cam Smith delivering the decisive blow in the ninth inning.

Sasha Yoder

September 11, 20262 min read

Empty stadium at dusk - illustration, Jake Team LLC
MLBFinal
Houston Astros2
Philadelphia Phillies1

September 10, 2026

Decisive Moment

The Houston Astros secured a narrow 2-1 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park thanks to a solo home run by Cam Smith in the bottom of the ninth inning. The blast to center field, measuring 421 feet, broke a tie and provided the winning margin for the visiting club.

Game Progression

Philadelphia held an early advantage after the second inning when Trammell doubled to right field, allowing Walker to cross the plate. This gave the home team a 1-0 lead that lasted until the middle of the fifth inning. In that frame, Arraez scored on a ground ball to shortstop during a fielder's choice play involving Stott and Bohm, evening the score at 1-1.

The game remained deadlocked until Smith’s ninth-inning power surge. Prior to the final frame, Houston’s pitching staff successfully contained Philadelphia’s offense. Zack Wheeler started for the Phillies, delivering seven innings of work while striking out nine batters. He allowed five hits and one earned run. Jose Alvarado followed with one inning of relief, surrendering two hits and a walk without allowing any runs.

For Houston, Cristian Javier pitched six innings, giving up three hits and one earned run while recording five strikeouts. Bennett Sousa contributed one scoreless inning with no hits or walks allowed. Bryan Abreu closed the middle relief with a perfect frame, striking out three batters. He earned the win, improving his record to 6-3.

Closing Out

Josh Hader finished the game for the Astros, pitching a hitless and walk-free ninth inning while striking out one batter. He recorded his 25th save of the season. Jhoan Duran took the loss for Philadelphia, falling to 2-6 after allowing one hit and one earned run in his appearance.

The final attendance at Citizens Bank Park was 37,100. The win improved Houston’s record to 75-72, while the Phillies fell to 82-65.

Sources

https://www.espn.com/mlb/game/_/gameId/401816884

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Sasha Yoder

Sasha Yoder covers Richardson high school and area college sports.

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