Houston, Sept. 8: Adam LaRoche and Nate McLouth each homered and Javier Vazquez pitched seven scoreless innings Tuesday to lead the Atlanta Braves to a 2-1 win over Houston.
Vazquez (12-9) gave up three hits while striking out nine and walking four.
Rafael Soriano picked up his 22nd save despite giving up a run in the ninth.
Vazquez was the only Atlanta player with more than one hit, going 2-for-3.
Houston's Felipe Paulino (2-8) allowed two runs on four hits in six innings. The 25-year-old hasn't won since a June 27 win over Detroit.
Hunter Pence went 2-for-4 and drove in the lone for the Astros, who were coming off a four-game sweep of Philadelphia.
Copyright 2009 by United Press International.