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HOUSTON -- Anthony Rendon and Matt Wieters delivered in the top of the 11th inning as the Washington Nationals took advantage of slight defensive misplays by the Houston Astros for a 5-4 interleague win on Thursday night at Minute Maid Park. Rendon (2-for-3) produced a sacrifice fly that gave Washington the lead before Wieters (2-for-4) added a two-out single that scored Ryan Zimmerman from first base.
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Wilmer Difo scored the first run of the inning after reaching on a bunt single and advancing to third on a wild pitch by Astros right-hander Tyler Clippard (2-7).
Rookie third baseman J.D. Davis hit his first career home run in the bottom of the 11th off Nationals left-hander Sammy Solis, who recovered to notch his first save.
Houston native Matt Albers (7-2) earned the win for the Nationals with a perfect 10th inning.
Trailing 3-1 entering the bottom of the ninth, the Astros (77-50) rallied against Nationals right-hander Brandon Kintzler.
Alex Bregman and Josh Reddick recorded singles, with Bregman scoring on the Reddick hit to slice the deficit to 3-2. One batter later, Yuli Gurriel doubled to the left-center-field gap, and Reddick rounded the bases from first to pull the Astros even.
Stephen Strasburg worked six scoreless innings for the Nationals, retiring his first seven batters. He sidestepped the only significant trouble he encountered by inducing an inning-ending double-play grounder by Gurriel with the teams locked in a scoreless tie in the fourth.
After surrendering a two-out double to Bregman and being visited by trainers for a left calf issue in the sixth, Strasburg got Jose Altuve to fly out to left field to cap his appearance. He allowed three hits and one walk with seven strikeouts over 90 pitches, including 60 strikes.
Rendon also doubled twice to pace the Nationals (76-49), who scratched across a pair of runs in the fifth inning off Astros starter Dallas Keuchel. Michael Taylor added a run-scoring double to right-center field in the seventh to plate Wieters from first base to extend the Washington lead to 3-0.
Keuchel allowed three runs (two earned) on four hits and two walks with four strikeouts over seven innings.
Brian McCann's RBI single in the eighth cut Houston's deficit to 3-1.
NOTES: Astros C Brian McCann was reinstated from the 10-day disabled list and batted eighth. McCann missed nine games with right knee soreness. ... Nationals RHP A.J. Cole will start the series opener against the Mets on Friday, with LHP Gio Gonzalez bumped back to Saturday. Gonzalez threw a season-high 121 pitches in his previous start on Sunday at San Diego, and based on that workload, Nationals manager Dusty Baker deemed it prudent to give Gonzalez an extra day of rest. ... With Double-A Corpus Christi cancelling games this weekend in deference to Hurricane Harvey bearing down on the Gulf Coast, Astros C Evan Gattis (concussion) returned early from his rehab assignment. Gattis could be reinstated from the disabled list this weekend.
