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HOUSTON -- The Houston Astros had solid pitching but couldnt get their offence going in the first two games against Atlanta. On Thursday, they finally put together a complete game and won 6-1 to avoid a series sweep. Matt Dominguez broke out of a slump with a three-run home run and rookie George Springer also homered to back up seven strong innings by Jarred Cosart. Dominguez snapped an 0-for-23 skid with his two-out shot to left-centre field off Mike Minor (2-5) that made it 5-1 in the fifth inning. "Thats the big hit that when we were in this here funk that we were in, that was the big hit that had been eluding us," manager Bo Porter said. Dominguez said there was a mixture of relief and excitement when he connected on his home run. "I try not to focus on it but of course it gets in your head," Dominguez said. "Good situation. Got a good pitch to hit and I was finally able to put the barrel on it." Cosart (8-5) allowed six hits and a run for his fourth straight victory. Porter believes that Cosarts presence on the mound has improved with each start this season and the 24-year-old agreed. "When Im throwing strikes I have a lot more confidence and obviously thats what theyve been preaching," Cosart said. "And with the mechanical stuff Ive been doing I have a lot more confidence in throwing strikes and just being able to trust my stuff and attack the hitters and know Ive got a really good defence behind me thats going to make a lot of plays for me." Springers solo homer off Juan Jaime in the seventh pushed the lead to 6-1. He has 15 homers this season, the most by a rookie in franchise history before the All-Star Break. Lance Berkman had the previous mark with 12 in 2000. Minor gave up seven hits and five runs in six innings to remain winless since May 19. Jon Singleton had two hits and an RBI and Jose Altuve added a pair of hits and swiped two bases for the Astros, who had managed just four runs combined and had been shut out twice in a four-game losing streak. Altuve leads the American League with 107 hits and 30 steals. Justin Upton had two hits on Thursday and hit .364 with two homers and four RBIs in the series and B.J. Upton had a hit and scored Atlantas only run. "Things just didnt go our way," Justin Upton said. "For the most part we tried to play a little small ball with our run-scoring struggles and weve done a pretty good job of it. (Thursday) it didnt work out for us and we didnt get the big ball, either." The Braves had trouble stringing together hits against Cosart and he was helped by the Astros turning a pair of double plays. Evan Gattis doubled to start the seventh before Jason Heyward drew a walk, but Cosart retired the next three batters to end the threat. B.J. Upton hit a leadoff single before stealing second and taking third on an error on the throw by Jason Castro. The Braves went up 1-0 when he scored on a sacrifice fly by Tony La Stella. Altuve singled and a double by Singleton, which bounced off the wall in left field, sent him home to tie it at 1-1 in the first. Minor plunked Dominguez to start Houstons fourth before a double by Castro. The Astros took a 2-1 lead when Castro scored on a groundout by Jesus Guzman. NOTES: The Astros opened their gates 30 minutes early Thursday to allow fans to watch the World Cup match between the United States and Germany on the stadiums big screens. ... Atlanta 1B Freddie Freeman was back in the lineup after leaving Wednesday nights game in the eighth inning after being hit by a pitch on the right elbow. ... Houston selected the contract of RHP Jose Veras from Triple-A Oklahoma City and outrighted RHP Kyle Farnsworth before the game and he has elected free agency. Veras struck out Justin Upton for the last out of the game. Authentic Custom Jerseys . He will be practicing with the Norfolk Admirals (AHL) on a conditioning assignment. - @AnaheimDucks Corey Perry has a knee sprain and will miss the next three to four weeks. Custom Jerseys Nike . Moments after scoring and setting off another wild celebration at Minsk arena, Platt leapt into the arms of Belarusian captain Alexei Kalyuzhny. https://www.cheapcustomjerseysonline.com/. He was still a kid, going into his senior year of high school. Thursday, the point guard stood in front of a couple dozen members of the media and spoke with poise about how much hed grown since then, and how hes ready for the next level. Custom Jerseys Adidas . Heck, we might just miss the BCS. Maybe? It sort of worked out this season. Top-ranked Florida State (13-0) was the only team to get through the regular season unbeaten, and the Seminoles did it in dominating fashion. Custom Jerseys China .ca presents its latest weekly power rankings for the 2013-14 Barclays Premier League season.LOS ANGELES -- The Los Angeles Kings jumped on a couple of early scoring chances and spent the rest of the night playing stellar defence. When a few shots broke through that defensive front, Jonathan Quick was there. The Kings won the Stanley Cup two years ago with that basic formula, and they can see it clicking again as they close in on another playoff run. Jeff Carter scored his 250th career NHL goal on a power play, Quick made 17 saves to remain unbeaten since the Olympic break, and the Kings beat the Montreal Canadiens 2-1 Monday night for their fifth straight victory. Jake Muzzin scored an early goal for the Kings, who have won four games in six days since the break to solidify their playoff position in the Pacific Division, 10 points ahead of fourth-place Vancouver. The Kings might not be the most eye-catching team in the NHL, but the back-to-back Western Conference finalists results are becoming increasingly attractive. "Were playing the way I expected us to play coming out of the break," said Justin Williams, who got an assist on Muzzins goal just 1:54 in by leading a rush. "Were playing hard and not giving up leads. We do need to capitalize on more of our chances, but its two points we need for playoff position." Los Angeles took an early lead and hung on through 35 closing minutes of scoreless hockey for its first home victory over the Canadiens since March 8, 2003. Quick put together another outstanding game for the Kings on the heels of his performance for the U.S. national team in Sochi, making a handful of big saves to beat the Canadiens for the first time in his career. With his 168th win, the Conn Smythe Trophy winner is just three behind Rogie Vachon for the Los Angeles franchise record. "The style that we play, those are the kind of games youre going to see more often than not," Quick said. "At times it was a little slow, but I thought we carried the game for the most part. We didnt give them many opportunities. It was the kind of game you want to play." The Kings followed up their 6-0 victory at Montreal on Dec. 10 with another solid performance against the Canadiens built around that defence. Loss Angeles has allowed an NHL-low 134 goals, and Montreal couldnt crack the Kings defence except for P.ddddddddddddK. Subbans fortunate deflection goal late in the first period. "We played against the best defensive team in the league, and that showed," Montreal coach Michel Therrien said. Peter Budaj stopped 20 shots for Montreal, which had won five of six. The Canadiens opened a four-game West Coast trip with their first regulation loss since Feb. 2 -- and a taste of the frustration felt by Los Angeles more frequent opponents. "We couldnt get much sustained pressure, and thats a big part of it," Montreal captain Brian Gionta said. "We got a lucky bounce on the one goal, but for the most part, we werent able to get to the net as freely as we wanted. Weve got to give them credit for that, but weve got to find ways to break through." Montreal put goalie Carey Price on injured reserve with an apparent groin injury before the game, eight days after he posted a shutout in Canadas gold medal-winning victory over Sweden in Sochi. Budaj has started every game since the break, but Price might be able to play in Wednesdays game at NHL-leading Anaheim. Although Los Angeles dominated possession early, the Canadiens tied it late in the period when Quick blocked Subbans long shot, and the puck ricocheted off Jarret Stoll and into Quicks net. Carter put the Kings back ahead early in the second period, putting Anze Kopitars pass into the top corner of Budajs net with a slick wrist shot for his 22nd goal of the season. "The first 10 minutes, they certainly were coming fast, and we didnt have an answer for it," Montreal forward Brendan Gallagher said. "At the end, we had our chances and started to create stuff, but they are a good defensive team and they dont give up a lot." NOTES: Montreal visited Staples Center for the first time since Dec. 3, 2011. ... Australian Open champion Stan Wawrinka and rising star Eugenie Bouchard, a Montreal-area native, both attended the game. The BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif., began Monday with qualifying play. ... Stoll played in his 700th NHL game. ' ' '