Astros: Why The Club Cannot Clinch Playoffs Tonight

It’s tough news for the Houston Astros.

What we thought was going to be a reality tonight will not come to pass at least for one day.

This race for the playoffs is exactly what I expected and what I projected when we got about to the midpoint of the season.

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The Astros have been up-and-down since the All-Star Break as teams like the Texas Rangers and the Los Angeles Angels have had time to catch them in the race for validity, a spot in the postseason.

Many of us fans thought that the Astros were going to have the ability to clinch a playoff spot tonight but the Angels just got through with an impressive comeback over the Rangers — scoring five runs in the ninth inning — to beat them 11-10 today.

Led by an Erick Aybar homer, the Angels rallied all the way to being just a half-game behind the Astros for the 2nd AL Wild Card slot.

Mama never said this was going to be easy but the Astros literally have to win out if they want the biggest prize — the AL West division — which is still ripe for the taking.

The Astros are just 1.5 games behind the Rangers for that title but right now it’s all about doing their job by winning these final two games — today and tomorrow.

The Astros will have to settle to clinch tomorrow because the best they can do today is tie for the Wild Card.

It’s okay, a photo finish with a dramatic ending to a season with plenty of peaks and valleys is just what the doctor ordered.

I’ll be banking on it.

The Astros looked indestructible last night against the Arizona Diamondbacks — scoring a franchise-record 21 runs — while Carlos Correa set a rookie record for home runs (22) a mark not reached since Lance Berkman had 21 in 2000.

He became the second-youngest player to a notch a homer, single, triple and a walk only to the legendary Ted Williams, who did so more than 70 years ago in 1939.

Sounds like a Rookie of the Year candidate to me!

He has been mostly glorious since his call-up back in June and we definitely know that he’ll be the centerpiece for the Astros exponential success for years to come.