HOUSTON -- The American League West race appears as though it will go down to the wire, which isn’t anything new for the Astros. Houston enters Saturday with a three-game lead over the second-place Mariners with 27 games remaining, which means it should be an exciting September. In winning the previous four AL West titles, the Astros didn’t pop champagne bottles until the final three or four games of the regular season three times. In 2022, they had a huge lead in the division entering September and clinched the title with 14 games left. This year’s race figures to be another nail-biter. Here’s a look at where the Astros stood entering September in the past four seasons and how the West was eventually won. |
2021 Where they stood entering September: 78-54, first place (five games ahead of A’s) How they finished: The Astros finished strong, going 17-13 and clinching the AL West with a 3-2 win over the Rays in the 159th game of the regular season. The Astros were closing in on the division title a week prior, but they lost five out of six games, including a three-game sweep in Oakland. The surging Mariners closed to within 3 1/2 games with four games to go on Sept. 29 before Houston finally nailed it down. How did they do in playoffs? They beat the White Sox in four games in the ALDS and beat the Red Sox in six games in the ALCS before losing to the Braves in six games in the World Series. |
2022 Where they stood entering September: 84-47, first place (11 1/2 games ahead of Mariners) How they finished: There was no drama in September, with the Astros entering the month with a huge division lead before finishing 22-9 en route to a 106-win season. The Astros, who had a 10-game lead by late June, clinched the AL West in Game 148 with a 4-0 win over the Rays in St. Petersburg. They were rested and ready for the postseason. How did they do in playoffs? The Astros swept the Mariners in the ALDS and the Yankees in the ALCS before beating the Phillies in six games in the World Series. |
2023 Where they stood entering September: 77-58, tied for first with Mariners (one game ahead of Rangers) How they finished: A ho-hum 13-15 finish meant the AL West race would come down to the final day of the regular season, but the Astros were able to win their third consecutive division title with an 8-1 win in Arizona. The Astros’ 90th win of the season, combined with the Mariners’ 1-0 win over the Rangers, gave Houston the tiebreaker and the division crown. The Astros finished with the same record as Texas but owned the tiebreaker thanks to winning the season series, and earned the No. 2 seed in the AL playoffs. How did they do in playoff? The Astros dispatched the Twins in four games in the ALDS before losing in seven games to the eventual World Series champion Rangers in the ALCS. The road team won each game, with Texas taking Games 6 and 7 in Houston. |
2024 Where they stood entering September: 74-62, first place (five games ahead of Mariners) How they finished: The Astros went 14-11 in September, including 11-5 in their final 16 games, and clinched the division with a 4-3 win over the Mariners in Houston in Game 158. “I think we’ve gotten better over the course of the year each month,” third baseman Alex Bregman said. “As a ballclub, sometimes you have your best month early and I think ours is still ahead of us.” How did they do in playoffs? Alas, it wasn’t. The Tigers swept the Astros in two games in the Wild Card Series in Houston, ending Houston’s run of seven consecutive trips to the ALCS. |
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Signed to a Major League contract by the Astros on Aug. 22, veteran reliever Craig Kimbrel is excited about the opportunity to contribute in a pennant race. Kimbrel, 37, comes to Houston as a nine-time All-Star whose 440 career saves are the fifth most in Major League history behind Mariano Rivera (652), Trevor Hoffman (601), Lee Smith (478) and Kenley Jansen (470). The Astros are Kimbrel’s ninth team, and that doesn’t include the Rangers, who stashed him away in Triple-A Round Rock for much of this season before allowing him to seek another opportunity. He faced five batters in his second outing with Houston on Friday, walking three and striking out two. "Over the past couple of years, I’ve run into guys that are in the big leagues now that are like, ‘Hey man, I watched you when you first came up,’ and now where I am watching them still doing it, it goes by fast,” he said. “I’ve been so focused over the years. You get into the mindset of showing up every day and working and your mind is on getting outs and doing it over and over again, and time goes by fast. It just feels like it was yesterday. I’ve learned a lot over the years, a lot about this game, a lot about people and it’s been very enjoyable.” |
THIS WEEK IN ASTROS HISTORY |
Sept. 1, 2019 Justin Verlander threw his third career no-hitter in a 2-0 win over the Blue Jays in Toronto, joining Larry Corcoran, Cy Young, Bob Feller, Sandy Koufax and Nolan Ryan as the only pitchers to throw at least three. Verlander shut down the Blue Jays -- becoming the third player to throw multiple no-hitters against the same team and the first to do so on the road. He threw 120 pitches and struck out 14 batters, allowing a leadoff walk to Cavan Biggio before sending down 27 batters in a row. Astros third baseman Abraham Toro broke a scoreless tie in the ninth inning with a two-run homer off Ken Giles. |
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