ASTROS WIN THE ALCS!

Empire statement: Houston Astros sweep Yankees en route to second straight World Series

Empire statement: Houston Astros sweep Yankees en route to second straight World Series
The Astros are headed back to the World Series. Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images.

The Houston Astros aimed to shut the door on the 2022 season for the New York Yankees in Game Four of the American League Championship Series, and it is exactly what they did. Houston defeated New York 6-5 to advance to its second straight World Series.

Houston battled all game long against the Yankees, who were determined to win to avoid the sweep. The Astros overcame multiple deficits, including a three-run early hole to come out victorious.

The final mistake for New York came at the top of the seventh inning. In what should have been at least one out on second baseman Jose Altuve, who was running to second base after a hit by shortstop Jeremy Peña, New York second baseman Gleyber Torres threw a bad feed to New York shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa, which resulted in the ball rolling into the outfield.

The error kept Altuve at second and got Peña to first base. Yordan Alvarez followed up by getting a ground ball single to right field that tied the game 5-5. The heart of Houston’s batting order continued to deliver for the Astros. Third baseman Alex Bregman singled on a line drive to right field that made it 6-5, a lead Houston never relinquished.

Houston first turned the game around in the third inning when catcher Martín Maldonado and Altuve got on base with back-to-back walks. The Astros trailed 3-0 entering the inning. The stage was set for Peña to become a game hero.

Peña was able to get into a 3-1 count on pitcher Nester Cortes, who seemed to be battling an injury that caused New York manager Aaron Boone and the team’s training staff to go check on him earlier in the inning. Peña launched a homer to left field that tied the game at three and left the Yankees stunned.

The play sucked the air out of New York’s fans at Yankee Stadium, ignited the Houston faithful in attendance, and was likely the play that ensured the rookie came away with the ALCS Most Valuable Player award. Cortes was then taken out of the game for pitcher Wandy Peralta. New York later stated Cortes had suffered a groin injury.

Peralta was unable to stop the bleeding for the Yankees. Yordan Alvarez doubled on a line drive to right field and Kyle Tucker moved him to third with a single. First baseman Yuli Gurriel delivered the go-ahead hit with a ground ball to right field that allowed Alvarez to score and gave the Astros a 4-3 lead.

Game Four started out ominous from a weather perspective and on the scoreboard. The first pitch didn’t get thrown until a roughly 90-minute delay due to drizzle and the threat of rain. Once the tarp came off the field and the game got rolling, it was the Yankees that jumped out on Houston pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. early.

McCullers struggled against the Yankees’ top of the order in the first inning, giving up three hits and two runs. McCullers’ issues continued in the second inning as he allowed New York shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa to get an inning-opening double.

After recording two outs, McCulllers walked Aaron Judge, which was followed by a double from Anthony Rizzo that scored Kiner-Falefa and made it 3-0 in favor of the Yankees. McCullers had runners on the bases all game long.

When it was all said and done, the 29-year-old pitcher went 5.0 innings, gave up eight hits and allowed four total runs, three of which were earned runs. McCullers also struck out six Yankees. Hector Neris took over in relief in the sixth inning. With two outs, Neris gave up a solo shot to Bader that gave New York a 5-4 lead.

Outside of the run allowed by Neris, Houston’s bullpen went the rest of the way without allowing a run. Bryan Abreu, Rafael Montero and Ryan Pressly combined to pitch 3.0 hitless innings and two strikeouts.

Overall, the ALCS saw various Astros star as heroes. In Game One, it was Peña, McCormick and Gurriel, who each homered against the Yankees. In Game Two it was Bregman, who delivered with a three-run homer that carried Houston past New York.

Game Three saw Cristian Javier pitch 5.1 innings giving up only one hit as he struck out five Yankees. Houston had five other pitchers make appearances in the game. They only allowed two hits and struck out six more New York batters. Offensively it was McCormick and Christian Vazquez, who accounted for four of Houston’s runs.

Game Four saw multiple players step up big again. Peña started the rally, Alvarez and Bregman finished it. More importantly, Altuve’s bat has appeared to have awoken. After going 0-for-25 to start the postseason, he got one hit in Game Three. Altuve added two more hits in Game Four.

Houston will now have a few days off until it hosts the Philadelphia Phillies for Game One of the World Series on Friday at Minute Maid Park.

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The Astros are back in action Tuesday night, hosting the White Sox. Composite Getty Image.

The Astros are making noise again — not by bludgeoning teams with a powerhouse offense, but by grinding through games and getting elite production from a patched-together pitching staff. It’s a testament to their depth and resilience that they went 4-2 on a tough road trip while averaging just 3.6 runs per game. Even more impressive? The staff allowed just 2.3 runs per game during that stretch.

It’s fair to be impressed. This is a team still missing key pieces and leaning heavily on unproven arms, yet they’ve built a 2.5-game lead over Seattle in the AL West. If the rotation keeps performing like this, that cushion might not just hold through the All-Star break — it could grow.

Houston's pitching has been the great stabilizer. The Astros rank 1st in strikeouts, 9th in ERA, 4th in WHIP, and 2nd in batting average against. The numbers aren’t carried solely by the stars either. Youngsters like Brandon Walter and Colton Gordon have stepped in admirably. Walter has allowed just two runs combined across his first two starts (6 IP and 5 IP), while Gordon has quietly gone five innings in three straight outings, giving up 1, 4, and 3 runs. Ryan Gusto has been inconsistent — failing to get through five innings in his last three starts — but has kept the damage manageable (3, 2, and 2 runs in those outings).

Meanwhile, the top of the rotation has been lights out. Framber Valdez and Hunter Brown have become one of the most dominant 1-2 punches in baseball, and Lance McCullers Jr. is starting to look like a real contributor again. It’s a staff carrying the team while the bats slowly try to catch up.

That offense, while mediocre overall — 15th in OPS, 20th in runs, 19th in homers, and 18th in slugging — has shown signs of life in recent days. Jeremy Peña and Jake Meyers have provided much-needed sparks. Peña is hitting .370 over the past week with an .851 OPS, while Meyers has been even hotter, posting a .381 average and .934 OPS.

The biggest news off the field this week was the potential end of the Forrest Whitley era. The former first-round pick was designated for assignment, a move that answers an early-season question: Who’s more likely to contribute this year — Whitley or McCullers? The answer is now clear.

Whitley’s DFA also serves as a reminder that not even elite GMs like Jeff Luhnow are immune to draft misses.

As the Houston Chronicle's Greg Rajan points out, Luhnow’s final four first-round picks with Houston all fell short: Whitley (2016), J.B. Bukauskas (2017), Seth Beer (2018), and Korey Lee (2019) have yet to become meaningful pieces for any club. The draft remains a gamble — even for the best.

Still, the Astros are finding answers. Despite an offense that’s still searching for consistency, their pitching — both from the top and the bottom of the depth chart — has been dominant. If that continues, this club won't just hold the lead. They’ll have momentum heading into July.

There's so much more to cover! Don't miss the video below as we examine the topics above and much, much more!

The MLB season is finally upon us! Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday!

*ChatGPT assisted.

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