Yanks Win 8 In A Row, Beat 'Stros 8-3!

By Andy Singer

April 26th, 2026

Photo Credit: Karen Warren, AP Photo

April wins matter. Despite the fact that Yankee fans have grown all too accustomed to the Yankees winning big in April only to face a lull in the middle of the year, the team still needs to take advantage of the fact that the rest of the projected powerhouses in the AL East have stumbled out of the gate. They are doing just that as they extended their winning streak to 8 games with an impressive 8-3 win over the Houston Astros on Saturday night. Let's get to the recap:

Too Many Homers

Many people noted that the Yankees had surprisingly struggled to hit homers in the season's first couple of weeks. That phenomenon is now just a whisper from the past, as the Yankees continued their recent barrage of home runs against the Astros, swatting 3 more last night, all solo shots.

Grisham got the Yankees on the board with a solo shot in the 3rd to tie the game at one apiece:

Caballero gave the Yankees a lead with his own laser-beam off of a 95 MPH, full-count fastball in the top of the 5th:

To give the Yanks the lead for good, Austin Wells hit his 2nd homer of the year on a fastball up in the zone to give the Yanks a 3-2 lead:

So now, I guess we get to hear that the Yankees hit too many homers, right? In all seriousness, no one can claim that the Yankees hit nothing but meaningless homers, as Cal Raleigh tried to claim last season as he muttered on a hot mic following an Aaron Judge homer. Each of these shots either tied or gave the Yankees a lead.

Austin Wells needed a big hit tonight in the worst way. He's started the year ice cold at the plate, and I can't help but think that unless he starts to get going offensively, he's going to start to cede some playing time to JC Escarra. His homer to RF was a squeaker that barely made it into the first row of RF, but they don't give you extra credit for distance. Wells came up clutch last night at a time that the Yankees needed him. Hopefully it gets him going offensively.

Weathers Makes His Case

I am in a very small camp of people that thinks Ryan Weathers is capable of being a very good starting pitcher in 2026. Saturday night, Weathers continued to make his case with a solid start against the Astros. Weathers didn't flash overpowering stuff the way he has at times this year, but I thought he moved the ball around the zone reasonably well.

Most critically, Weathers held his velocity into the 6th inning last night, something that had been a struggle for him in his previous starts. Weathers came out with an average fastball velocity of 95.5 MPH in the first inning, and was averaging 96.1 MPH in the 6th inning when he eventually got the hook.

Of some concern is the fact that hitters consistently hit the ball very hard when they made contact against Weathers. Most problematically, his 4-seam fastball got hammered, and he threw it more than any other pitch in his arsenal. He needs to go to the sinker with far greater frequency, as I noted in the offseason; it tunnels far better with his sweeper and change-up, and he can shift his 4-seam usage to be more of a knockout late in the count up in the zone.

For now though, Weathers pitched effectively, and is proving to have a really good pickoff move. Weathers is getting a lot of the little things right, and he's good enough to subdue a tricky Astros lineup even without further tweaks.

The Yankees Played...Defense?!?

After listening to the Fox broadcast crew wax poetic about the Red Sox's ability to play defense the other night, the Yankees have been the team that has looked excellent defensively. That trend continued on Saturday night. Chisholm and Grisham both made fantastic plays that helped steady their pitcher. More of that, please!

The Bullpen Held A Lead!

I freely admit: the second the game goes to the bullpen, I start to hold my breath. As many antacids as the bullpen forces me to consume when watching a game, I have to give credit where credit is due: they got the job done over 3.2 innings last night. Fernando Cruz, who I love, but walks a tightrope far too often, looked great coming in to relieve Weathers in the 6th. Likewise, Doval and Bird did their jobs admirably.

It would be nice if the bullpen was this solid most nights. They still need supplementation, but for one night, they helped us to breathe easier.