Live by the home run, die by the home run.
For eight innings it looked like the Astros would die by the home run.
Justin Verlander seemed dead in the water in the first inning when the second and fourth St. Louis batters, Alec Burleson and Nolan Gorman homered, putting the Astros down 2-0 before even getting to bat.
In the third inning a Paul Goldschmidt double and and a Nolan Arenado single put the Stros down 3-0. But with two outs in the bottom of the third, Yordan Alvarez gave the Astros life with a two-run homer, his 12th.