Dodgers get seven hits but drop fourth in a row, 3-1 to Astros

Fearful that perhaps there has been too much negativity surrounding the first-place Dodgers, here is some positive news.

The Dodgers got a hit Saturday, seven of them actually. More good news, the second-place Giants lost.

That pretty much ended the run of good news for the Dodgers, who went on to lose their fourth consecutive game, this one 3-1 to the Astros at Minute Maid Park despite having Zack Greinke on the mound.

Coming the day after being no-hit by Mike Fiers, the Dodgers remained hitless until Jimmy Rollins led off the fourth with a single. Things currently on the wrong kind of roll, he was thrown out trying to stretch the hit into a double.

The Dodgers went 20 innings without scoring a run until finally pushing one across against Scott Kazmir in the sixth inning. This time Rollins did lead off with a double and scored on a single by Justin Turner.

For Rollins, it was the 500th double of his career.

By then, however, the Astros had already scored twice off Greinke, who gave yo only three hits in his seven innings, but uncharacteristically two were home runs and the other a triple.

Jose Altuve led off the bottom of the first inning with a triple. Then running on contact, he scored when Carlos Correa hit a bouncer to third. Turner rushed his attempt to field the ball and dropped it for an error as Altuve scored.

Luis Valbuena hit his 22nd home run of the season in the second inning, a solo shot to give Houston a 2-0 lead. Despite the 22 homers, he has only 44 RBIs.

But after the Dodgers cut the lead to one with their run in the sixth, Altuve got it right back with a solo home run in the bottom of the inning.

Greinke (13-3) had given up only eight home runs all season (24 previous starts). It was the first time he surrendered two home runs in one game in a year (last Aug. 23 vs. the Mets at Dodger Stadium).

Otherwise, Greinke had another strong game. In his seven innings, he did not walk a batter and struck out five. His major-league best ERA rose to from 1.58 to 1.67.

Kazmir (7-8) went six innings for the Astros, giving up the one run on six hits and a walk. He struck out eight. Will Harris, Pat Neshek and Luke Gregerson held the Dodgers scoreless over the final three innings, with Gregerson earning his 24th save.

Despite the loss, the Dodgers remain in first place in the NL West, leading the Giants by a tenuous 1½ games.