Diamondbacks' Pavin Smith drills 3 home runs in first 3 at-bats in dominant win over Astros

Pavin Smith was almost unstoppable on Sunday.

The Arizona Diamondbacks' outfielder led his team to a dominant 12-6 win over the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park. Smith had three home runs in his five at-bats on the night, which accounted for eight RBI in the victory.

Smith got things started for the Diamondbacks in the second inning, when he drilled a three-run shot off the right-field foul pole. That put Arizona up 3-0 almost right out of the gate.

In the third inning, after Eugenio Suárez hit an RBI single and loaded up the bases, Smith hit a grand slam to deep left field. Just like that, the Diamondbacks were up 8-0, and Smith had taken credit for seven of their eight runs.

Smith didn’t slow down, either. He hit his longest home run of the night in the fifth inning, powering his third homer just shy of 400 feet to right field to add yet another run for the Diamondbacks.

Smith struck out in his fourth at-bat in the seventh inning and was walked in the ninth. The Diamondbacks added a run in both the seventh and eighth innings, too, as Luis Guillorme hit a sacrifice fly and then Jake McCarthy hit an RBI single. Suárez hit a solo home run in the ninth inning, which pushed the team to a seven-run lead.

Suárez had himself a night, too. He had four hits and four runs in his five at-bats, and his home run in the ninth inning was his 26th of the season.

Smith had just four home runs on the season before Sunday. He entered the game against the Astros with a .247 batting average and 18 RBI on the year, his fifth with the franchise. He has now matched his home run total from the 2023 campaign, and he’s just four shy of matching his career high set in 2021.

The win snapped a three-game losing skid for the Diamondbacks, who now hold an 80-64 record. They are now a half-game back from the San Diego Padres for second in the NL West and the top NL wild-card spot. Both the Diamondbacks and Padres are squarely in the playoff picture.