HOUSTON -- Seattle starter Chris Young got hit hard and the Mariners missed a chance to move up in the AL playoff race, yielding five home runs Saturday night in a 10-1 loss to the Houston Astros.
The Mariners stayed one game behind AL wild-card leader Oakland and a half-game in back of Kansas City for the second slot. The A's and Royals both lost earlier in the day.
Chris Carter and Alex Presley hit two-run homers and Matt Dominguez and Carlos Corporan added back-to-back solo shots. Jake Marisnick had a three-run homer in the seventh inning as the Astros snapped a four-game skid.
Young (12-9) was tagged for seven runs in three-plus innings.
Dallas Keuchel (12-9) pitched eight strong innings, striking out eighth. He also reached 200 innings in a season for the first time in his career.
Carter and Presley homered one batter apart in the first inning. Dominguez and Corporan connected off Young on consecutive pitches in the fourth.
It was Carter's 37th home run of the season, a career high. Nelson Cruz leads the majors with 39.
Dexter Fowler doubled and scored two runs for the Astros. Houston tied a season high for homers previously achieved April 6 against the Angels.
Jose Altuve got two hits, giving 218 this season. He tied Rod Carew for most by a second baseman since 1934. Carew reached the feat in 1974 with Minnesota.
Young was tagged for seven runs and eight hits. He also threw two wild pitches.
Robinson Cano hit an RBI single for Seattle run in the third.
Marisnick homered off Erasmo Ramirez, who pitched four innings in relief.
Mariners: Dustin Ackley, who hit two homers in Friday's 10-5 win, sat out the game because of a bad left ankle. Manager Lloyd McClendon said he would play Sunday.
Astros: RHP Josh Fields remains day-to-day with what interim manager Tom Lawless described as a strain.
Mariners RHP Hisashi Iwakuma (14-8, 3.42 ERA), who is 6-3 over his last 10 starts, faces rookie RHP Collin McHugh (10-9, 2.66). McHugh has won his last six decisions and has allowed two runs or fewer in nine straight starts, the longest active streak in the majors.
