There’s something deeply satisfying about watching the Houston Astros embarrass the Texas Rangers on a warm May evening in Space City — and Friday night delivered that satisfaction in near-historic fashion.
Spencer Arrighetti, the 26-year-old right-hander who started this season in Triple-A Sugar Land (yes, that close to home), came within six outs of throwing a no-hitter against Texas in a dominant 2-0 Astros victory at Minute Maid Park. The loss drops the Rangers further back in the AL West standings, and Corey Seager didn’t even bother suiting up to watch it happen.
The Kid from Katy Almost Made History
If you want a story that’s pure Texas, look no further than Spencer Arrighetti. He went to Cinco Ranch High School in Katy — just a short drive down I-10 from where he’s now making Rangers hitters look foolish on a Major League mound. Friday night, he carried a no-hitter through 7⅓ innings before Rangers rookie Justin Foscue singled to left field on pitch No. 102.
Foscue, a 27-year-old with fewer than a dozen plate appearances this season, got the hit. Credit where it’s due. But let’s be honest — Arrighetti had the entire Rangers lineup tied up in knots for nearly two hours before that moment.
He struck out five, walked four, and finished with an ERA that now sits at a ridiculous 1.50 through six starts in 2026. For a pitcher who was riding a bus to Constellation Field in Sugar Land just weeks ago, that number is absurd in the best way.
Paredes Does the Heavy Lifting Early
The only run Houston needed came off the bat of third baseman Isaac Paredes in the bottom of the third — a solo shot that cleared the wall and put the Astros ahead to stay. One swing. One run. That was all Arrighetti required for the better part of the evening.
The second insurance run came much later. Braden Shewmake, riding an 11-game hitting streak (a career high), poked an RBI single in the eighth to push the lead to 2-0 and take any remaining drama off the table.
Defense Kept the Dream Alive
For most of those seven-plus innings, Arrighetti had some help. Left fielder Zach Dezenzo made a diving grab on a scorched line drive off the bat of Alejandro Osuna in the fifth inning that had “base hit” written all over it before Dezenzo’s glove had other plans. First baseman Christian Walker also bailed his pitcher out in the sixth, scooping a tough-hop grounder from Brandon Nimmo and turning it into an inning-ending double play.
Plays like those are why no-hit bids aren’t solo acts — they’re full team performances, and Friday night’s crew showed up.
Foscue Breaks It Up, But the Party Continues
One out into the eighth, with Houston five outs from history, Foscue slapped that single into left field and the sellout Minute Maid crowd let out the collective exhale they’d been holding since about the fifth. Arrighetti walked off at 102 pitches, head held high, to a standing ovation.
Reliever Bryan King came on, got Joc Pederson to fly out to right, and then catcher Christian Vazquez made it even cleaner by picking Foscue off first base — with Ezequiel Duran still at the plate. That’s the kind of execution that sends a message to a division rival.
King returned for the ninth and retired the Rangers in order, earning his fourth save of the season.
Meanwhile, on the other side: Rangers starter Jack Leiter — the former No. 2 overall draft pick who has never quite lived up to the billing in Arlington — allowed just one run on three hits while striking out six across seven solid innings. His ERA sits at 1-4 on the season. Good pitching lost to better pitching. That’s baseball.
The I-45 Rivalry Just Got a Little More Interesting
Corey Seager, by the way, was absent from the Rangers lineup Friday. The star shortstop was given the night off while mired in an 0-for-27 slump. Whether he would’ve changed the outcome is a question no one in Houston is losing sleep over.
The Astros (now with some desperately needed momentum) and Rangers face off again Saturday night, with Jacob deGrom (3-2, 2.62 ERA) going for Texas against Houston’s Kai-Wei Teng (1-3, 3.12 ERA).
Whatever happens Saturday, Friday belonged to a kid from Katy who nearly rewrote the record books on his home turf.
Houston baseball is alive and well, y’all.
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