Astros Magic Number Is 1 After 13-2 Beatdown of A’s
· Yahoo Sports
It will come down to the final day of the season to decide the A.L. West, but Houston has inched closer.
Astros 13 A’s 2
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The odd innings paid dividends all night for the Astros, as they’d score in the first, third, fifth and seventh and ninth, along with the eighth for good measure. Isaac Paredes started things with a solo shot to make things 1-0.
In the top of the third, Cam Smith drew a walk and then came around moments later on Jeremy Pena’s 21st home run of the season.
The fifth inning was the exclamation point of the night and on Yordan Alvarez’s MVP season. Alvarez launched his 42nd HR, a 3-run blast, making things 6-1. The lead expanded with three more runs in the seventh, highlighted by Jose Altuve’s 48th RBI.
Aside from the offensive output, largely driven by long balls, the night was really about Hayden Wesneski, who earned the win. Since emerging from a 449-day rehab from Tommy John surgery in a victorious effort back on July 29th, Wesneski has been a vital cog in pushing Houston to the brink of their 9th post season berth in 10 years. Saturday night marked his 11th start. Wesenski’s threw just 82 pitches, going seven innings with five strikeouts and 1 earned run. It was the third time this season that he’d go seven innings.
For good measure, Pena added to his impressive night, registering a fourth hit with his 22nd homer of the year. Pena has tied his career high. By the time 8th was completed, the Astros had 12 total runs on the board. Lucas Spence made it a baker’s dozen, hitting his fourth homerun of this A’s series in the 9th for the final run of the night.
Pitching for the first time in almost two weeks, Ronel Blanco would come on and secure two innings of scoreless relief.
Sunday will be a day of scoreboard watching. The Rangers will complete their season at Target Field, sending left hander MacKenzie Gore to the mound. With a win or a Rangers loss tomorrow, the Astros will host the White Sox on Tuesday at Daikin Park for the Wild Card round.
Odds & Ends:
Yordan Alvarez now has 105 RBI on the season.
The Astros now lead all of baseball with 225 home runs.
Jose Altuve has moved into spot #100 on baseball’s all-time hit list with his pair of hits Saturday Night. He can leapfrog Todd Helton next.