What to expect from the Rangers-Astros ALCS series
This year’s ALCS is all about Texas. The Rangers enter this series 5-0 but will face the Astros, who historically look unstoppable in the playoffs.
HOUSTON – One game removed from a debilitating loss that left them on the brink of elimination, the Texas Rangers proved they were still alive.
And on Monday evening they won’t be the only ones playing for their survival.
Led by postseason star Nathan Eovaldi, with a redemptive turn from closer Jose Leclerc and capped by a vengeful attack from slugger Adolis Garcia, the Rangers rebounded from a devastating home loss in Game 5 to defeat the Houston Astros 9-0. 2, in Game 6 of the American League Championship Series on Sunday night at Minute Maid Park.
Monday night: Game 7 for the unofficial Texas state championship and, more importantly, the AL pennant and a ticket to the World Series.
They did it thanks to Eovaldi’s clever start. And Mitch Garver’s home run and RBI double, along with manager Bruce Bochy’s bold maneuver.
And most of all, they’re still alive because Leclerc put aside Friday’s brutal miss – blasting a three-run home run off Jose Altuve that put the Rangers into a 3-2 ALCS hole – to to transport them to the game 7.
Just like in Game 5, Leclerc was called out in the eighth inning, this time for a five-out save while only holding a 4-2 lead, and he responded by walking Kyle Tucker to load the bases and the better part of a Minute Maid crowd of 42,368 sent into excitement.
Pitching coach Mike Maddux visited the mound to impart some words of wisdom and calm Leclerc’s heart rate before facing Maurico Dubón, who hit .353 in this ALCS.
It worked: Leclerc mostly gave up his fastball and unleashed his cutter on Dubón and pinch-hitter Jon Singleton, causing Dubón to come up short on a softliner.
Singleton, who drew a crucial walk in Game 5 before Altuve’s blast on Friday, worked a full count before hitting a cutter in the eighth pitch of the at-bat, ending the threat.
Leclerc stomped off the hill, screamed and was momentarily relieved.
Garcia provided the delicious, avenging finish.
Garcia was hit by a pitch in Game 5 – which umpires and Major League Baseball believe was intentional, earning Astros reliever Bryan Abreu an ejection and an imminent suspension – and sparked a bench-clearing incident by hit Astros catcher Martin Maldonado in the face.
At his first two recording appearances he was booed violently and struck out to the delight of the audience. But when Garcia faced Astros reliever Ryne Stanek with the bases loaded in the ninth, he nailed a no-doubt line drive into the Crawford Boxes in left field.
Grand Slam. Home run brace. Game over.
But he knows he can’t get too comfortable: Game 7 is just around the corner.
Here’s how Game 6 went on Sunday:
Mitch Garver, who hit a home run early in the game, hit an RBI double in the top of the eighth off Bryan Abreu, extending the Texas lead to 4-2. Garver brought in rookie Evan Carter, who led off with an infield single and then moved to second.
HOUSTON – Nathan Eovaldi is giving the Texas Rangers exactly what they needed.
He pitched six quality innings and got the crucial run on base as the Rangers maintained their 3-2 lead through six innings of ALCS Game 6.
With his club facing elimination, Eovaldi kept the Astros off balance with his beguiling pitch mix, using his four-seam fastball that reached 98 mph, a split-finger fastball that rounded the ground bombed around home plate, and a cutter came at her curve that knocked her off balance.
He gave up singles to Yordan Alvarez and Jose Abreu in the bottom of the sixth, but limited the damage to a sacrifice fly off Mauricio Dubon, although his fastball velocity dropped from the upper 90s to 94. The Rangers still need to find nine outs to force a decisive Game 7 on Monday night at Minute Maid Park.
HOUSTON – It’s not going to be quiet for the Texas Rangers in Game 6 of the American League Championship Series.
Catcher Jonah Heim hit a two-run home run off Framber Valdez with two outs in the top of the fourth inning, giving the Rangers a 3-1 lead in the first game they were eliminated in this year.
Heim’s home run came two innings after Mitch Garver tied the game with his own home run. Both hitters took the same approach, going with Valdez pitches to right field and taking advantage of the cozy dimensions in that corner. Heim’s home run traveled just 336 feet, barely escaping the bouncing grasp of Houston’s Kyle Tucker.
After Houston took a 1-0 lead at the end of the first, Mitch Garver hit Astros starter Framber Valdez with a solo home run to make it 1-1 in the top of the second.
Garver had 19 home runs in the regular season and hit one in the ALDS against the Orioles, driving in seven runs in that series.
Jose Altuve led off with a single in the bottom of the first, stole second and scored the opening run on Yordan Alvarez’s single off Nathan Eovaldi.
HOUSTON – Bryan Abreu, the Houston Astros reliever who served a two-game suspension for an erratic pitch in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series, is not going any further for now.
Abreu formally appealed his decision, the Astros announced less than an hour before Sunday’s Game 6 between the Astros and the Texas Rangers and will be available out of Houston’s bullpen as they attempt to advance to the World Series.
Houston manager Dusty Baker said Abreu, Major League Baseball and union officials were scheduled for a meeting at 5 CT, two hours before game time, where a possible compromise would likely be discussed.
But both sides appeared to hold firm: The two-game suspension remains in place, Abreu will appeal and MLB rules say a hearing will be held within 48 hours to avoid putting it on hold until the playoffs.
“I’m not a lawyer,” Baker said Sunday afternoon when asked about the possible outcome of the meeting. “Even though my mother wanted me to become a lawyer, it’s too much school.
“So it’s in the hands of the lawyers.”
Abreu was ejected from Game 5 on Friday for hitting Rangers slugger Adolis Garcia with a pitch that umpires ruled was intentionally thrown at the batter; MLB agreed with the assessment and imposed a two-game suspension.
Should the Astros win Game 6, any confirmed suspension would have to be served during the World Series. A hearing on Monday could potentially knock Abreu, the club’s talented provider, out of Game 7 if the Rangers win on Sunday.
Texas Rangers
starting pitcher: RHP Nathan Eovaldi
Houston Astros
Starting pitcher: LHP Framber Valdez
HOUSTON – The Astros were divided over whether Adolis Garcia’s aggressive approach to catcher Martin Maldonado fueled their comeback in Game 5. At least it seemed like they kept track of things a little better than the Rangers.
The playoffs are not the place to settle scores, especially when the refereeing staff is on high alert from the start. But the tension facing the Rangers heading into an elimination game and the aftermath of Game 5 will make the tension even more palpable.
“Man, I don’t know. I don’t have a crystal ball,” said Astros manager Dusty Baker, who was also ejected from Game 5. “I mean, it’s going to be what it’s going to be. You have to wait and see, just like me.
“Like we don’t write a script, it just happens.”