Almirola advances in NASCAR playoffs
BOSTON — David Price was good enough, the Red Sox bullpen was even better, and Jackie Bradley Jr. delivered a go-ahead, three-run double off the Green Monster on Sunday night to lead Boston to a 7-5 victory over the Houston Astros and tie the AL Championship Series at one game apiece.
Price fell one out short of his first career postseason win as a starter but still went back to the winning clubhouse for the first time in 11 playoff starts.
Red Sox closer Craig Kimbrel gave up an RBI single to Jose Altuve with two outs in the ninth before Alex Bregman hit a flyball that was caught on the warning track in left field to end it, handing Houston its first loss in five playoff games this year.
Game 3 is Tuesday in Houston, followed by two more at Minute Maid Park and a chance for the defending World Series champion Astros to clinch a second straight AL pennant at home.
Price was spotted a tworun lead in the first inning and then fell behind 4-2 before Bradley clanged one off the Monster that Astros left fielder Marwin Gonzalez helplessly chased as it bounced back toward the infield.
Price left with a 5-4 lead after walking Tyler White on four pitches with two out in the fifth, his second walk of the inning; in all, the Red Sox left-hander was charged with four runs on five hits and four walks, striking out four.
Matt Barnes struck
TALLADEGA, Ala. — Aric Almirola capped an absolute Stewart-Haas Racing rout at Talladega Superspeedway with an overtime victory that earned him an automatic berth into the third round of NASCAR’s playoffs.
It also snapped a 149-race losing streak for Almirola and atoned for his oh-soclose moment in the season-opening Daytona 500.
“I just love racing at Talladega and I came to the track with the mindset that we were going to go race and we were going to go give them hell, and if we wrecked, we wrecked,” Almirola said. “And if we win, we win. And we won. What a cool time to do it, too.”
More important, it showed that SHR arrived at Talladega prepared to work as a four-car team and ensure one of its drivers made it to victory lane.
The SHR Fords were untouchable all weekend. They swept qualifying, won every stage of Sunday’s race and used teamwork to pull away from the field. As the laps wound down, Kurt Busch led his three teammates in a straight line and pulled the train away from the pack, which couldn’t organize itself behind the SHR group to mount any sort of challenge.
But the dynamics changed when Alex Bowman spun with three laps remaining to bring out an ill-timed caution.
Now the race was going to overtime, and the SHR cars didn’t have enough gas for the extra laps.
First Busch’s fuel light began to flicker. Then Kevin Harvick got the same warning. As the field roared to the green flag, Harvick forfeited a shot at victory by pulling off the track to get enough gas to make it to the finish.
Busch stayed out as the