It wasn't looking good. Then it looked better. Then it looked worse. Then it was freaking great. The Astros beat South Ardmore 13-6 in the first game of the first pivotal series of September. Houston is 78-61, and 43-27 at Not Minute Maid Park. The Mariners lost, as well.
*AL Playoff Picture:
1. Baltimore (86-51)
2. Seattle (77-60)
3. Minnesota (72-66)
4. Tampa (83-55)
5. Houston (78-61)
6. South Ardmore (76-61)
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7. Toronto (76-62): +0.5
8. Boston (72-66): +4.5
*AL West Odds, Morning of September 5 (and change from yesterday):
Houston: 51.6% (+11.7%)
Seattle: 33.8% (-6.7%)
South Ardmore: 14.6% (-5.0%)
Houston: 48.3% (+13.5%)
Seattle: 34.0% (-5.6%)
South Ardmore: 17.7% (-7.1%)
The Game
*The win puts the Astros at 7-4 over South Ardmore in 2023, meaning that in the event of a tie record between the two teams, the Astros will get the tiebreaker.
*Arlington is 3-7 at Mimic Maid Park in their last ten games. Houston's 13 runs were the most scored by an opponent there since the Dodgers put 16 on them on July 22.
*Houston has now won six straight road games, and are 18-8 on the road since the All-Star Break.
*The Astros hit five home runs in a game for the fifth time this season - four of them have been on the road.
*Conversely, the Astros allowed 4HR in a game for the 4th time this season. It's the first time they've won a game after giving up 4HR since September 24, 2022 when Houston beat Baltimore 11-10. I hate it when I've committed to something like this only to find that "the last time it happened" wasn't all that long ago.
*Jose Altuve went 4x6 with 2RBI and enjoyed the 9th regular season 2HR game of his career. It's his 10th multi-HR game if you count the postseason.
*Mauricio Dubon also trotted 720 feet around the bases for the first time in his career. He hit two home runs between July 24-September 3. Career home run leaders, born in Honduras:
1. Mauricio Dubon: 27
2. Gerald Young: 3
*It's the first time in MLB history that the 9-1 hitters went back-to-back twice in the same game.
*Yordan Alvarez walked three times in a game for the 5th time in his career, and the first time since September 10, 2021.
*Alex Bregman was 4x4 with 2RBI and a walk. It's the 8th 4-hit game of his career. It's also the 7th time in his career he's been on base five times in a game, and the 5th time in 2023, raising his OBP from .365 to .370 - the highest since he had a .374 OBP on April 24.
*7-8-9 in the lineup, Chas McCormick-Yainer Diaz-Mauricio Dubon, went a combined 5x14 with 3HR/6RBI.
*Rangers Reliever of the Day: Josh Sbarro Sborz! Mans went 0.2IP, 5H/6R (5ER), 0K:2BB.
*Jonathan France (he has to earn his initials back): 5IP, 6H/5ER, 5K:3BB, 3HR. After allowing 10 homers in his first 17 appearances (and zero homers in six straight outings from July 14-August 17), France has now allowed eight home runs in his last four starts.
*Prayers up for Ryne Stanek, who went down hard on his ankle in the 9th inning and is being evaluated. But it didn't look good.
*Yainer Diaz said the vets called a meeting after Sunday night's loss to the Yankees and "implored" everyone to "turn the page."
Other Stuff
*Wednesday's game will feature Justin Verlander vs. Max Scherzer.
*AL Records since August 15:
Seattle: 13-5
Baltimore: 12-5
Tampa: 11-5
Detroit: 10-8
Minnesota/Toronto: 9-8
Houston/Oakland: 9-9
Boston: 9-10
New York: 8-9
Cleveland: 8-10
Anaheim: 5-12
Chicago: 5-13
South Ardmore: 4-13
Kansas City: 4-14
*What To Watch Today:
Blue Jays @ A's: 2:37pm Central
Mariners @ Reds: 5:40pm Central
Astros @ Ramgers: 7:05pm Central
I cannot recommend the Copa90 Stories YouTube channel enough.
*Shohei Ohtani will need surgery, but maybe not Tommy John?
*Speaking of the Angels, Anthony Rendon is such a bitch. Anthony Rendon has also played in 200 of the Angels' 522 regular season games since he signed a 7yr/$245m contract. I did the math. The Angels have paid him $617,547 per game that he's actually suited up for.
*From yesterday morning: The Biggest Lone Star State Showdown Ever.
*Movies leaving Netflix in September.
*The Walrus: The Greatest Scam Ever Written
*A Musical Selection: