Ace Justin Verlander had just wrapped up another strong start on Friday and was in the dugout in the fifth inning when Yordan Alvarez launched his third monster home run of the night in the Houston Astros’ 5-0 win over the Oakland Athletics.
The cameras panned to Verlander, eyes wide as he admired his teammate’s handiwork.
“It’s pretty cool when a major-league player can make other major-league players be in awe,” Verlander said. “It’s not something that happens all too often. And that was kind of one of those moments where everybody is just like: ‘My goodness.’ It’s just incredible what he’s able to do.”
Photo: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY
Alvarez homered in his first three at-bats, while Verlander threw five hitless innings in his return from the injured list as the Astros clinched a post-season berth.
The Astros (95-50) won their sixth straight game to join the Los Angeles Dodgers as the first two teams to secure playoff spots, reaching their sixth straight post-season.
There was no big celebration for this team with much bigger goals, but the Astros did share a quiet toast in the clubhouse post-game.
Photo: AFP
“You’ve got to keep in perspective ... how hard it is to get to the playoffs and to stay on top like this for a while,” Verlander said. “It’s not easy. So I’m glad we were able to take a moment.”
Alvarez, who is tied for second in the American League with a career-high 36 home runs, had solo shots off Adrian Martinez in the first, third and fifth innings. He capped his big night with a single in the seventh to tie his career high with four hits.
“Hitting one home run feels great, imagine hitting three,” Alvarez said in Spanish through a translator. “Just a very special night.”
Photo: AFP
TWO TO 700
In St Louis, Missouri, Albert Pujols hit his 698th home run, a tying two-run drive in the sixth inning that sparked the St Louis Cardinals over the Cincinnati Reds 6-5.
Pujols hit a first-pitch slider from Raynel Espinal into the left-field stands for his 19th home run this season, tying the score at 4-4.
Pujols trails only Barry Bonds (762), Hank Aaron (755) and Babe Ruth (714) on the career list.
“It’s just being out there and contributing to this ballclub and this organization,” Pujols said. “I think just getting every opportunity that I’ve been getting, especially lately, and just trying to help this ballclub to win.”
BIG TROUT
In Anaheim, California, Mike Trout homered for the eighth time in 10 games as the Los Angeles Angels tripped up the Seattle Mariners’ AL wild-card run with an 8-7 victory.
Trout homered in seven straight games, one shy of the big-leagues record, before failing to hit one on Tuesday and Wednesday against the Cleveland Guardians.
He put the Angels ahead 5-3 when he led off the fifth with his 36th home run of the season, tying an Angel Stadium record by homering in a fifth straight game.
Seattle (80-63) dropped one game behind the Toronto Blue Jays (82-63) for the top AL wild card and remained a half-game in front of the Tampa Bay Rays (80-64), who are in the third and last wild-card spot.
In other games on Friday, it was:
‧ Braves 7, Phillies 2
‧ Mets 4, Pirates 3
‧ Giants 0, Dodgers 5
‧ Red Sox 2, Royals 1
‧ Nationals 5, Marlins 4
‧ Blue Jays 6, Orioles 3
‧ Guardians 4, Twins 3
‧ Brewers 7, Yankees 6
‧ Diamondbacks 3, Padres 12
‧ Tigers 3, White Sox 2 (10i)
‧ Rays 3, Rangers 4
‧ Cubs 2, Rockies 1
Bologna on Thursday advanced past Empoli to reach their first Coppa Italia final in more than half a century. Thijs Dallinga’s 87th-minute header earned Bologna a 2-1 win and his side advanced 5-1 on aggregate. Giovanni Fabbian opened the scoring for Bologna with a header seven minutes in. Then Viktor Kovalenko equalized for Empoli in the 30th minute by turning in a rebound to finish off a counterattack. Bologna won the first leg 3-0. In the May 14 final in Rome, Bologna are to face AC Milan, who eliminated city rivals Inter 4-1 on aggregate following a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Bologna last reached the
If the Wild finally break through and win their first playoff series in a decade, Minnesota’s top line likely will be the reason. They were all over the Golden Knights through the first two games of their NHL Western Conference quarter-finals series, which was 1-1 going back to Minnesota for Game 3 today. The Wild tied the series with a 5-2 win on Tuesday. Matt Boldy had three goals and an assist in the first two games, while Kirill Kaprizov produced two goals and three assists. Joel Eriksson Ek, who centers the line, has yet to get on the scoresheet. “I think the biggest
From a commemorative jersey to a stadium in his name, Argentine soccer organizers are planning a slew of tributes to their late “Captain” Pope Francis, eulogized as the ultimate team player. Tributes to the Argentine pontiff, a lifelong lover of the game, who died on Monday at the age of 88, have been peppered with soccer metaphors in his homeland. “Francisco. What a player,” the Argentine Football Federation (AFA) said, describing the first pope from Latin America and the southern hemisphere as a generational talent who “never hogged the ball” and who showed the world “the importance of having an Argentine captain,
Noelvi Marte on Sunday had seven RBIs and hit his first career grand slam with a drive off infielder Jorge Mateo, while Austin Wynn had a career-high six RBIs as the Cincinnati Reds scored their most runs in 26 years in a 24-2 rout of the Baltimore Orioles. Marte finished with five hits, including his eighth-inning homer off Mateo. Wynn hit a three-run homer in the ninth off catcher Gary Sanchez. Cincinnati scored its most runs since a 24-12 win against the Colorado Rockies on May 19, 1999, and finished with 25 hits. Baltimore allowed its most runs since a 30-3 loss to
RSS