(SportsNetwork.com) - With three homers in his last four games, Steve Pearce is a big reason the Baltimore Orioles are on a season-best four-game winning streak.
Pearce tries to continue his hot hitting of late when Baltimore resumes a three-game series against the Houston Astros.
Pearce has raised his average from .222 from last Sunday to .275.
Jonathan Schoop's RBI single highlighted a two-run seventh inning in Baltimore's 4-3 win last night.
J.J. Hardy greeted Jerome Williams (1-2) with a ground-rule double to left- center field to open the seventh. Steve Clevenger moved Hardy over to third with a sharp grounder to shortstop for the first out of the inning.
With the infield in, Pearce hit a slow roller to third that didn't allow Hardy to cross home, but Schoop picked up his teammate with a single up the middle that broke a 2-2 tie.
Nick Markakis, who has hit safely in 16 straight games, drove in Schoop with a looping double into the right-center field gap that increased the cushion to 4-2.
Wei-Yin Chen (4-2) earned the win after allowing two runs on five hits with four strikeouts over seven innings. Darren O'Day pitched a perfect eighth inning and Tommy Hunter allowed a run in the ninth, but still managed to pick up his 11th save of the season.
"I thought his breaking ball was a lot sharper," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said of Chen. "He deserved to get (the win) tonight so I'm glad we pushed one across there (in the seventh). Wei-Yin had a good look."
Scott Feldman returned from the disabled list due to shoulder soreness and pitched six innings of two-run ball with six strikeouts for Houston, which has lost six of its last seven.
Feldman spent half of 2013 with the O's after being traded from the Chicago Cubs. He went 5-6 with a 4.27 ERA in 15 starts with Baltimore last season.
"Feldman did a good job," said Houston manager Bo Porter. "When I talked to him after the game he said that's as strong as he's felt all year. He looked strong through six innings."
Collin McHugh, who suffered his first loss of the season in his last start, gets the assignment tonight for the Astros. The 26-year-old righty allowed just one earned run in his first two starts, pitching 15 1/3 innings with 19 strikeouts, but on Sunday against Seattle he was lit up for six runs -- five earned -- in four innings.
This will be his first career start against Baltimore.
Miguel Gonzalez counters for the Orioles. The right-hander, who has dropped consecutive starts, was lifted after 4 2/3 innings Sunday at Minnesota when he allowed six hits and three runs.
Gonzalez is 1-1 with a 4.66 ERA in two games versus Houston.
The Orioles are 9-1 at home all-time against the Astros.
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