Ready for launch Correa homers, Astros force Game 6 in ALCS
SAN DIEGO — Carlos Correa homered with one out in the ninth inning as the Houston Astros beat the Tampa Bay Rays 4-3 on Thursday behind sensational pitching from five rookies to remain alive in the American League Championship Series.
Correa drove a fastball at the letters from Nick Anderson to straightaway center field, watched the ball for a few steps and then flung his bat. He was greeted at home by his ecstatic teammates. Correa is only 3- for-18 in the series, but two of the hits are homers.
Houston won a second straight elimination game thanks in large part to starter Luis Garcia and four fellow rookies, who combined to hold the Rays to two runs and four hits through 6 2/3 innings before manager Dusty Baker finally turned to a veteran, Josh James. Ryan Pressly, the seventh Astros pitcher, got the victory.
The Astros pulled to 3- 2 and forced Game 6, which will be a rematch tonight between left-handers Blake Snell of Tampa Bay and Framber Valdez of Houston.
In the ALCS for a fourth straight year, the Astros are trying to join the 2004 Boston Red Sox, the only team to come back from a 3- 0 deficit in an MLB best- of- seven series. The Red Sox beat the New York Yankees in the ALCS and went on to win their first World Series title in 86 seasons. Otherwise, MLB clubs leading 3- 0 in a best- of- seven postseason series are 37-1.
The Astros became the first team to hit a leadoff and walkoff home run in a postseason game.
“We had a meeting after we lost that third game. We said, ‘ Hey, we’re not ready to go home, so we’ve got to do something about it,’” Correa said. “But we’ve still got a long ways to go. We’ve got to keep taking care of business.”
Baker said Correa called the walkoff. The two hugged during the celebration.
“Boy, that will go down as one of greatest games in history and hopefully go down as one of greatest comebacks in history after two more games,” said Baker, 71, the first manager to take five franchises to the playoffs. “That’s as big a game as I’ve been involved in. That’s one of the reasons that I came back.”
The Astros, who got into the playoffs with a 29-31 regular-season record, are trying to reach the World Series for the third time in four years. They are trying to get there in a year when they have been criticized for their role in a cheating scandal en route to the 2017 title that was uncovered last offseason.
Correa also hit a walkoff homer in Game 2 of the 2017 ALCS off Aroldis Chapman of the New York Yankees.
George Springer homered on starter John Curtiss’ first pitch, and Michael Brantley broke a tie with a two- run single. Houston became the first team with a leadoff and walk- off home run in a postseason game.
“You go from feeling pretty good about our chances to knowing the game was over a short time after that,” Rays outfielder Kevin Kiermaier said. “They played a little bit better than us today, and it came down to one swing.”
Tampa Bay’s Ji- Man Choi tied the game with a homer to deep right leading off the eighth.
Rookie Randy Arozarena continued his remarkable postseason by hitting his sixth homer in 12 games, and Brandon Lowe also connected for the Rays, who need one more win to reach the Fall Classic for the second time in franchise history.
Springer led off the bottom of the first by sending Curtiss’ first pitch onto the second balcony of the Western Metal Supply Co. Building in the left field corner at Petco Park. On Wednesday night, he drove a two- run shot onto the third balcony to break a tie and lead the Astros to a 4-3 win.
It was his fourth homer this postseason and 19th of his career, the most in franchise history and tying Albert Pujols for fourth all- time.