The Houston Astros Win Big On Off Day
By Lucas Davis
It’s rare to come away with a victory when you don’t play, but that is exactly what happened for the Houston Astros Thursday.
Even though Houston had an off day, the Astros won big when the Texas Rangers beat the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, 5-3.
Heading into Thursday up a half a game in the standings for the second wild card spot (click here for all scenarios), Houston’s lead over the Angels moved to a full game, giving them much-needed breathing room with the final three-game set of the season starting on Friday.
Houston is a notoriously poor team on the road. They carry a league-worst 31-47 away from Minute Maid Park, which is the scenario when they travel to Arizona to face the Diamondbacks to close out the season.
Though it may not need to be said, the Astros need all the help they can get. With three games remaining against a Diamondbacks team who has a 38-40 record at Chase Field, Houston can navigate their way with a loss, or two, and still make the playoffs.
Sure, winning the AL West would be great — especially after leading the division for more than five months of the season — but making the playoffs anyway possible is the top priority. Taking first place in the West is still in reach with the Rangers up three games, but with how bad the Astros are on the road, keeping as much distance they can between themselves and the Angels is imperative.
For the Angels to knock the Astros out of the playoffs completely, they will have to sweep the remaining three games with the Rangers in Texas, while the Astros simultaneously get swept by Arizona. As unlikely as it is for the Angels to win their final three games, the Astros getting swept is very much in play, making the win the Rangers had Thursday all the more important.
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The Astros now control their own playoff destiny, which is what any fan wants at this point in the season. If they can win one game against the Diamondbacks, they assure themselves at least a tie-breaking game with the Angels for the final wild card spot. If Houston can come away with the series win, they assure themselves a spot in the playoffs for the first time since 2005.
The pressure is all on the Angels (and Twins) now, as they need to win at least two of their final three games to even have a realistic shot at the postseason.
If Houston can take care of business in Arizona, the young team that wasn’t expected to do much heading into the year is going to punch their ticket into the playoffs for the first time in a decade. A feel-good story that will go down as one of baseball’s most historic turnarounds is just a pair wins away.
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