'It's just two games' -- but it's two great games for Cabrera

HOUSTON -- The smile seemed just a bit brighter for Oswaldo Cabrera as the Yankees’ happiest player savored the biggest offensive night of his young career. Though a fine-tuned swing is fueling this early success, he also understands there is more to do.

Cabrera stroked a career-high four hits and drove in three runs, helping the Yankees continue a strong start to their season by rallying for a 7-1 victory over the Astros on Friday evening at Minute Maid Park.

“I’m so happy for it,” Cabrera said. “We’ve been working during Spring Training on good at-bats, and I’ve felt good for a couple of games. It’s just two games; we’ve got too many games [to come], so I’ve just got to keep working on that.”

Since getting the Opening Day nod at third base in place of the injured DJ LeMahieu, Cabrera has gone 6-for-9 (.667) through the season’s first two games, carrying over offensive changes that helped the 25-year-old wrap his spring on a 9-for-24 (.375) hot streak.

It hadn’t looked promising in the early going, when Cabrera managed just one hit in his first 23 exhibition at-bats, placing him in danger of beginning the season back in the Minors. But Cabrera’s “tale of two springs,” as manager Aaron Boone described it, is coming with a satisfying ending.

“He’s delivered in these first two games; he’s been right in the middle of everything,” Boone said. “It’s so good to see him swinging the bat like this and contributing offensively like this, because then he becomes so valuable. It’s great to see him reaping some benefits from a lot of the hard work he’s put in the last few weeks.”

Cabrera knocked a run-scoring single in the seventh before Juan Soto worked a bases-loaded walk to give New York the lead. It was part of a robust opening act in a new uniform for Soto, who has reached base safely in seven of his first 10 plate appearances.

That patient, grind-it-out quality was expected, but Soto’s defense has been better than advertised, including a sliding catch on Friday. As Yankees starter Carlos Rodón quipped, “I think we signed him for his defense at this point.”

“It’s really cool to see those words and improvement in the game. Everything is just pretty nice for me,” Soto said.

Largely handcuffed over six dominant frames by Houston’s Cristian Javier, the Yankees peppered the bullpen while taking advantage of sloppy play. Shortstop Jeremy Peña and pitcher Parker Mushinski committed errors on back-to-back plays in the eighth, producing two more Yankees runs.

Cabrera followed with a two-run single up the middle, making him the seventh player in franchise history to collect six hits through the season’s first two games and the first since Hideki Matsui in 2005.

“He’s great,” Soto said. “I’m more than happy for him. He’s a guy who’s been grinding throughout the Minor Leagues. Coming up to the league and doing what he’s been doing, we all know it’s early, but I’m more than excited to keep seeing him.”

Aiming to rebound after an underwhelming debut season in New York, Rodón labored through 4 1/3 innings, as best exhibited by the sweat-soaked uniform jersey he stripped off after the third inning.

Though Rodón navigated heavy traffic in his 87-pitch effort (54 for strikes), he held the line, limiting the Astros to one run on five hits and three walks.

“I’m happy we came up with a win,” Rodón said. “I know there’s room for improvement throughout the week leading into the next start, but I’ll walk away today happy that the Yankees won, for sure.”

Visits to Houston usually spell heartbreak, but the Yankees have now won five straight games at Minute Maid Park dating to last season. How encouraging have these first 18 innings been? Even the injury report, severely unkind over the past several seasons, offered relief.

Soto rolled his ankle running the bases in the third inning but remained in the game, promising to be ready to play on Saturday. Meanwhile, Gleyber Torres exhaled after X-rays on his bruised right thumb -- hit by a seventh-inning Tayler Scott fastball -- came back negative.

“All of my teammates are doing big things,” Cabrera said. “We’re trying to show that we never give up. That’s a good thing.”