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HOUSTON -- Houston manager Bo Porter knows that many question why he keeps penciling Chris Carter into the lineup game after game when the designated hitter is batting below . Cheap Real Air Max .200. Carter illustrated perfectly Wednesday night why Porter sticks with him. Carter homered twice, Dallas Keuchel pitched eight strong innings and the Astros beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 5-1. Carters first solo home run made it 3-1 in the fourth inning, and he added an opposite-field shot in the seventh. It was the fifth career multihomer game for Carter and second this year. The slugger has struggled this season and is batting just .199, but his power is undeniable and hes tied for the team lead with 12 homers. "Hes been up and down this year," Porter said. "The power numbers are there. The batting average is not there, but at the same time hes had some big hits and tonight is a step in a huge direction to him getting going." Carter led the Astros with 29 homers and 82 RBIs last year in his first full season in the majors. He feels less pressure at the plate now that the lineup has been beefed up with the addition of rookies Jon Singleton and George Springer. "Its nice to have guys like that where you dont feel like youre the only guy in the lineup where you have to do everything or everyone is looking to you to get a home run or something," Carter said. Keuchel (8-3) won for the sixth time in seven starts. He allowed four hits and a run, striking out five and lowering his ERA to 2.38. Even though the game is more than a month away, Porter was already stumping for Keuchel to get the All-Star call. "You look at the season Dallas Keuchel has put together to this point and if hes not an All-Star, what is? He continues to impress," Porter said. "Its a joy to watch." Brandon McCarthy (1-9) allowed eight hits and four runs in six-plus innings to remain winless since May 3. "I wasnt sharp from the get-go, but I thought I did a good job to get as deep as I could," McCarthy said. "The seventh inning there. The home run hurts and the guys getting on after that hurts and kind of spoils everything." Aaron Hill homered in the fourth for Arizonas only extra-base hit. Springer had two hits and an RBI and Singleton drove in a run as the Astros won for the fifth time in seven games. McCarthy has had success in Houston in the past and entered the game 2-0 with a 0.60 ERA in his career at Minute Maid Park. But the Astros got going against him early, with Springer singling in the first, Singleton drawing a walk and Jason Castro grounding an RBI single. Singleton was thrown out at third on the play. Jonathan Villar singled to start Houstons third before a one-out single by Springer. Both players advanced on a wild pitch by McCarthy before Villar scored on a groundout by Singleton to make it 2-0. The Diamondbacks didnt get a hit until Hill led off the fourth with his homer to the Crawford Boxes in left field to cut the lead to 2-1. Paul Goldschmidt singled after Hills homer, but Keuchel got back on track after that and retired 13 of his next 14 batters. The only hit in that span came on a single by Chris Owings with one out in the sixth inning. Ender Inciarte singled with two outs in the Arizona eighth, but Keuchel retired Owings to end the inning and Keuchels night. Springer drove in a run with a sacrifice fly in the seventh inning. NOTES: The series wraps up on Thursday when Arizonas Wade Miley opposes Scott Feldman. ... Houston 2B Jose Altuve missed his first game of the season because of soreness in his oblique muscle. Porter said Altuve didnt want to take the day off and tried to convince him to let him play. ... Diamondbacks OF Gerardo Parra was out of the lineup for a scheduled day off. ... The Astros signed several players taken in last weeks draft. They signed second round pick 1B A.J. Reed, RHP Ryan Thompson (23rd round), RHP Vince Wheeland (24th round), LHP Zach Davis (25th round), INF Mott Hyde (26th round), RHP Brandon McNitt (27th round) and RHP Keegan Yuhl (35th round). Cheap Air Max From China . His second visit, not so much. Roark (7-5) allowed four runs on 10 hits and one walk over six innings in a 7-2 setback in front of several friends and family members, as the Cubs snapped his personal streak of four consecutive victories on Friday. Cheap Air Max For Sale . The Mavericks avoided a season sweep by the Nuggets, who ran away with a win in Denver two weeks ago to hand Dallas its longest losing streak at three games. Dallas (42-28) got a boost in the playoff race when Miami rallied from seven down in the last 3 1/2 minutes to beat Memphis 91-86 Friday night.CLEVELAND -- Four years after their messy breakup, the Cavaliers and LeBron James are at least talking about a reunion. Cavs officials met with James agent, Rich Paul, this week about the free-agent superstars possible return. The sides visited as James continued his family vacation, a person with knowledge of the details told The Associated Press on Thursday night. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the talks. It was not immediately clear if owner Dan Gilbert was at the meeting. James recently opted out of the final two years of his contract in Miami. The two-time NBA champion has gone to four straight finals with the Heat. However, after the team was throttled by San Antonio in this years finals, James said he would weigh his options this summer. One of them could be re-signing with the Cavs, the team he spent seven seasons with before leaving in 2010 to join forces with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in South Florida. Wade and Bosh also opted out of their deals with Heat, raising speculation the "Big Three" could be headed in different directions. James decision to leave Cleveland -- Thursday was the four-year anniversary of the teams last pitch to him -- prompted Gilbert to condemn him in a scathing letter to Cavs fans. The owner also told The AP he felt James had quit during games in the playoffs. ESPN has reported that Paul also met with representatives for the Phoenix Suns, Houston Rockets and Dallas Mavericks. A photo of Mavericks owner Mark Cuban in Cleveland circulated on Twitter, though he said he was there for a commitment for his TV show, "Shark Tank." While James has been out of the country with his wife, Savannah, and their two sons, Paul has been working on the four-time MVPs future. Unlike four years ago, when teams flocked to Cleveland to make presentations to woo James, the courtship of him this time has been low key and rather business-like. The Cavs have waited patiently for their chance to try and convince the Akron, Ohio, native to come home. In the past few weeks, the Cavs have hired new coach David Blatt, selected Kansas swingman Andrew Wiggins with the No. 1 overall pick and gotten All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving to agree to a five-year, $90 million contract extension. Now, theyre working on bringing back James, who has never ruled out the possibility of a return. Fake Air Max. Two years ago, James was asked if he could ever see himself playing for the Cavs again. "I dont know. I think it would be great," he said. "It would be fun to play in front of these fans again. I had a lot fun times in my seven years here. You cant predict the future and hopefully I continue to stay healthy. Im here as a Miami Heat player, and Im happy where I am now, but I dont rule that out in no sense. "And if I decide to come back, hopefully the fans will accept me." Cleveland fans, most of them anyway, have gotten over James infamous "ecision," when he announced he was leaving on a nationally televised special. He was booed mercilessly in his first games back with the Heat, but in recent years he has been received more favourably. Maybe thats because the Cavs havent been to the playoffs since he left and Clevelanders know he might be the only chance they have to see a championship in their lifetimes. Cleveland hasnt won a title in any of the major sports since 1964. If he were to come back, James could repair the damage he did to his image when he left. But that remains a big if. In having Paul meet with other teams, James could simply be putting on pressure for the Heat to upgrade their roster. Miami has been pursuing free agents and Yahoo Sports reported team president Pat Riley and coach Erik Spoelstra met in Los Angeles with Lakers free agent Pau Gasol. The Heat could have trouble surrounding James with enough talent if the reports he will only accept a maximum contract are accurate. James is scheduled to be in Las Vegas next week to host a basketball camp, and then is expected to attend the World Cup in Brazil. In order for James to play again in Cleveland, he and Gilbert would have to have some sort of reconciliation. Gilberts letter -- famously typed in comic sans font -- was a blistering attack on James, who had carried the Cavs to the NBA Finals in 2007 but failed to deliver on his promise of a championship. Gilbert had guaranteed the Cavs would win a title before James, but later regretted the prediction. "Looking back now, that probably was not the most brilliant thing Ive ever done in my life," Gilbert said. He and James may get a second chance together. ' ' '