Houston is back on top

Astros take control of division with series win over A's

Astros' Jose Altuve
The Astros took two of three in Oakland to get back on top of the AL West. Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

The Astros took two of three in Oakland to get back on top of the AL West.

With an impressive win to even the series on Wednesday night, the Astros forced a winner-take-all finale for not only the victory of the three-game set but for sole possession of first place in the AL West. They would accomplish their mission, taking two of three in Oakland to continue their recent success.

Final Score: Astros 8, A's 4

Astros' Record: 26-18, first in the AL West

Winning Pitcher: Luis Garcia (2-3)

Losing Pitcher: Cole Irvin (3-5)

Houston builds up a lead behind Garcia

Unlike recent games where Houston scored first to take an early lead, Mark Canha started the scoring Thursday afternoon with a solo home run off of Luis Garcia to lead off the bottom of the first inning. Oakland held that 1-0 lead until the top of the third when the Astros would put together a three-run inning on four hits, including an RBI double by Martin Maldonado and back-to-back RBI singles by Michael Brantley and Alex Bregman. That made it a two-run lead for Houston at 3-1.

Former Astro Tony Kemp got one of those runs back to lead off the bottom of the inning, launching Oakland's second solo homer of the day, making it 3-2. Maldonado would make it back-to-back RBI at-bats in the top of the fourth, though, hitting a two-run homer to extend the lead to three runs. Garcia limited Oakland to those two solo homers over his five innings of work, allowing just one more hit in the third through fifth. His final line: 5.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 7 K, 2 HR, 92 P.

Astros win the series and move into first in the AL West

Brooks Raley took over out of the bullpen in the top of the sixth, getting through the inning but allowing a run on two hits to cut the lead to two runs. Bregman notched another RBI in the next inning to get it right back, a double to make it 6-3. Bryan Abreu was the next reliever, erasing a leadoff double for a scoreless bottom of the seventh. Ryne Stanek had the bottom of the eighth but put himself into a jam by hitting and walking a batter to start things off. After back-to-back strikeouts, he would issue another walk to load the bases, prompting Dusty Baker to bring in closer Ryan Pressly for a potential four-out save.

He would strand all three runners to get out of the jam, then a costly error by Oakland would extend the top of the ninth where Houston would add on two runs to make it a five-run game at 8-3. No longer a save situation, Pressly would stay in the dugout while Andre Scrubb would come in to finish things off, despite allowing a solo home run in the inning. The victory gave the Astros the series win and moved them a half-game ahead of Oakland to take over first place in the AL West.

Up Next: The Astros will travel back to Texas, heading to Arlington to take on the Rangers at Globe Life Field, starting a three-game set Friday at 7:05 PM Central. Kyle Gibson (3-0, 2.32 ERA) will be on the mound for the Rangers, while the Astros will be bringing up Tyler Ivey to make his MLB debut.

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Jeremy Peña is having success hitting fourth. Photo by Kevin M. Cox/Getty Images.

The Houston Astros host the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday night looking to keep momentum rolling and hand the Jays their fifth straight loss. First pitch is set for 7:40 p.m. EDT at Daikin Park.

Both teams enter the matchup with nearly identical records—Houston at 12-11, Toronto at 12-12—but they’re trending in opposite directions. The Astros have won six of their last ten and boast an 8-6 record at home, while the Blue Jays have dropped four straight and are just 4-7 on the road.

Ryan Gusto gets the start for Houston, entering with a 2-1 record, a 3.18 ERA, and 17 strikeouts across three appearances. He’ll go up against Bowden Francis, who brings a 3.13 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP into the game, along with 20 strikeouts in his four starts.

Jeremy Peña continues to spark the Astros lineup with three homers and three doubles, while catcher Yainer Diaz has added timely hits despite a recent slump. For Toronto, George Springer leads the team with a .333 average, and Bo Bichette has been steady at the plate, going 14-for-45 over his last 10 games.

The Blue Jays have found success when they out-hit opponents, going 10-3 in those games—but Houston’s pitching staff has held opponents to just a 2.86 ERA over the past 10 outings.

The betting line has Toronto as slight road favorites at -120, with Houston at +100 and the over/under set at 8 runs.

Here's a look at tonight's lineup. Cam Smith gets the night off in right field, with Zach Dezenzo filling in. It appears Dezenzo's thumb is fine after banging it up sliding into second base a couple of night's ago.


Image via: MLB.com/Screenshot.

Jake Myers is also getting the night off as Chas McCormick gets the start in center. And Mauricio Dubon is getting the nod, starting over Brendan Rodgers at second base.

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