The Houston Astros have proven once again they are #HoustonStrong and clinched the ALDS Series to beat the Tampa Bay Rays 6-1 in Game 5. Our hometown boys are once again in the running for the biggest game of the year as they prepare to take on the New York Yankee for bragging rights as the ALCS Champs moving on to the World Series.
Alex Bregman said it best in an after-game commentary with MLB reporter JP Morosi. He described the game, “It was like a heavyweight boxing fight and we were in the center of this madness.” Minute Maid Park was packed to the brim with fans sporting their favorite orange jerseys, as they cheered on the Astros to the very last pitch. The video below from the MLB shows the impressive comeback the Astros gave after having lost Games 3 and 4 to take a dominant lead starting off the bat in the first inning.
Video: YouTube/MLB
The MLB-best and franchise-record 107-win Astros came out with guns blazing. They dominated the first inning with George Springer and Michael Brantley hitting back-to-back singles, then José Altuve followed it up with a base hit off a high fastball to make it 1-0. Bregman, with a hit off a breaking ball, scored two more to take the lead to 3-0, and then Yuli Gurriel with a groundball single gave the Astros an early lead of 4-0. Houston set a franchise playoff record for most hits and runs in the first inning, according to USA Today.
Tyler Glasnow, the pitcher for the Tampa Bay Rays, had no chance against the powerhouse lineup of the Astros. “You get a taste of this, you want to keep going,” Rays manager Kevin Cash told USA TODAY. “Today we kind of got outpowered. Outpowered on the mound and obviously at the plate.” Gerrit Cole, the pitcher for the Houston Astros, was at the helm pitching a spectacular eight innings with the most strikeouts ever in a division series before Roberto Osuna wrapped it up in the ninth.
Michael Brantley and Altuve wrapped up the game, adding back-to-back home runs in the eighth to seal the deal and advancing the Astros to their third straight ALCS. We can only hope for a repeat of 2017 when they beat the Yankees in a seven-game ALCS and went on to win their first World Series championship!
The most anticipated heavyweight matchup is set. You want to be sure to root for our Texas team as they take on the Yankees on what’s sure to be a nail-biting series with the ALCS Game 1 airing on Saturday, October 12 at 7:08 p.m. CDT on Fox.
