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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. Gordie Howe Jersey . Ghoulam has put pen to paper on a four and a half year deal, tying him to Napoli until 2018. The 22-year-old Algeria international, who played for France at Under 21 level, has made 87 league appearances in four seasons at Saint-Etienne. Brett Hull Jersey . -- Isaiah Pead took a stutter step forward, then raced to the left sideline and travelled 60 yards up the field before finally getting tripped up by a leg tackle. http://www.redwingshockeyauthentic.com/mike-green-jersey/. After a tight first half, the Croatians took command in Reykjavik after Skulason was dismissed for a professional foul in the 51st minute, but couldnt find a way past Iceland goalkeeper Hannes Halldorsson and his packed defence. Eduardo had a weak shot cleared away from near the goalline after barely a minute for Croatia, whose substitute Ivica Olic forced a fine reaction save from Halldorsson in the 55th. Detroit Red Wings Jerseys . Picard had a goal and two assists to help Canada improve to 2-0 at the tournament. Seven different players scored for the two-time defending champions. "Today all four lines played excellent," said head coach Laura Schuler. Alex Delvecchio Jersey . Mika Zibanejad and Jason Spezza scored in the shootout to lead the Ottawa Senators to a 2-1 victory over Nashville on Saturday night.Canadas largest private-sector union, which is trying to organize major junior hockey players across the country, is scheduled to meet on Monday with Ontarios minister of labour to discuss the working conditions faced in the Canadian Hockey League by its 1,700 mostly teenaged players. Jerry Dias, Unifors president, said he plans to ask Ontario Labour Minister Kevin Flynn to establish a task force charged with scrutinizing the business of junior hockey. Dias told TSN that when he met with Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne three weeks ago at Queens Park, Wynne brought up the issue of working conditions in junior hockey with him. Dias said Wynne told him she is interested in learning more about whether players get a fair share of the games profits. Flynns spokesman Craig MacBride declined to comment. Wynnes spokeswoman Zita Astravas said both the premier and Flynn have already met with Dias. "Discussions covered a wide range of topics," she said. "Unifor is an important partner and our government looks forward to a positive relationship with labour." Two years after a similar attempt to organize CHL players fizzled out, Unifor is trying again. The union, which represents about 300,000 workers in various industries, says major junior players are underpaid and exploited by the owners of junior teams that have become hugely profitable in recent years. The CHL says thats not true. Players dont receive more compensation because the leagues consider them student athletes, said CHL commissioner David Branch. Many players are also eligible for valuable scholarship programs when they finish playing junior hockey, he said in an interview. Dias said Unifor staff have spent the past few weeks trying to determine how governments in the U.S. states of Washington, Oregon, Michigan and Pennsylvania -- states where eight of the CHLs 60 teams play -- view major junior players. Canadian students who attend U.S. schools, such as the University of Michigan, obtain student visas to travel across the border. But NHL player agent Anton Thun said that since OHL players have "P1" work visas, its unclear how Branch and other league officials can consider those players as student athletes. "I dont profess to know the immigration laws," Branch said. "I dont know what you need to facilitate a player playing in the U.S." Thun said the three major junior leagues in Canada are desperate to keep their player costs down at the same time as the leagues collective profits have surged. "These leagues have gone from being mom and pop businesses in the 1980s to hugely profitable money-making private businesses that sell millions of dollars in tickets, hundreds of thousands of dollars in jerseys and sponsorships and TV rights. The truth is junior teams are no longer what they say they are." Most CHL teams are private companies and dont disclose their finances, though Branch said roughly one-third of teams lose money. He declined to provide any estimates on how much money cash-rich or cash-poor teams generate. The Kitchener Rangers, who are publicly owned, play in a city with aa population of 219,000.dddddddddddd In August 2013, the team reported total revenue of $6.2 million for the previous season, up from $5.6 million. The Rangers sold $470,000 worth of team merchandise alone. One of the lures of playing major junior hockey is the chance to earn a scholarship that can later go to pay for a players post-secondary education. The packages can add up to more than $40,000, depending on how long a player plays in the CHL. Thun said a union might help spur a discussion about simply paying players that money in cash. "Why not just give it to them, and let them and their families decide whether to invest it, or spend it on a car, or something else that they want or need," Thun said. Branch, however, said the parents of players have been supportive of the scholarship packages, even though it expires if a player doesnt go to school within 18 months of their junior career. In a focus group of about 16 families of OHL players that was conducted five years ago, most parents said they supported the time limit, Branch said. "What if the kids indiscriminately spend the money, what are they left with?" Branch said. "Parents have suggested there is a value to putting a framework in place to encourage players to go on to a post-secondary education." Branch said hes unsure what it might mean for teams if they were forced to begin paying a minimum wage to players. Unifors Dias said an average 40-hour work week adds up to about 2,000 hours a year. If players in Ontario were paid the minimum wage of $11 per hour for half the year, it would work out to about $11,000 per player, or at least $220,000 a year for each team. Its unclear how much teams now pay for players, but in recent years, the OHL paid players $55 a week. The league recently introduced new guidelines where teams re-imburse players for expenses instead of paying them a set weekly amount. Not everyone would embrace the concept of a union. Bob Stellick, a sports marketing executive whose son Robert played two years in the OHL, said many parents would shrug off the idea of a union. "I dont think $50 a week really makes any difference for most families," said Stellick, whose Toronto company has produced public service announcements for the CHL. "The key for parents is the type of experience their son gets. If the player doesnt play to family expectations, isnt drafted, gets traded once or twice, and doesnt complete high school, then yes the family would be sour." Award-winning journalist Rick Westhead is TSNs Senior Correspondent for TSNs platforms - TSN, TSN Radio, TSN.ca and TSN GO. He has covered a wide variety of sports issues for a slate of leading publications, among them the Toronto Star, Bloomberg News, Canadian Press, Globe and Mail, New York Times, and Saturday Night Magazine. Earlier this year, Westhead was part of a team that won the prestigious Project of the Year at the National Newspaper Awards. He was also honoured with the Toronto Stars Reporter of the Year Award in 2007. Share your comments with Rick Westhead on Twitter at @rwesthead. ' ' '