Heads swiveled around Minute Maid Park when Carlos Correa’s bat produced an unmistakable sound. As people seated in the Crawford Boxes stood to greet Correa’s three-run blast, Jose Altuve hopped over the dugout fence to await his arrival at home plate. Correa looked toward the Astros dugout and pointed emphatically at the ground before pounding his right fist against his chest, over his heart.
He appeared to be marking his territory.
It took longer than some expected or hoped, but the Astros clinched the American League West with a 3-2 win over the Rays on Thursday night, sealing their fourth division title in the last five seasons.
The win also lowered the Astros’ magic number needed to clinch home field advantage over their projected ALDS opponent, the White Sox, to one with three games remaining.
The AL East champion Rays, who a night earlier clinched the league’s best record with a shutout win against the Astros, could stall them no longer. It was only fitting that Houston’s triumph was delivered by its All-Star shortstop and top rotation arm.
Lance McCullers Jr.’s quality start, Correa’s homer and a pair of successful challenges keyed the Astros’ 93rd win of the season.
McCullers cruised his first time through the order on 36 pitches and did not relinquish a hit through five innings. He departed after the sixth inning having yielded three hits, two earned runs, one home run, one walk and four strikeouts.
The outing concluded a career-best regular season for McCullers, who finished with a 3.16 ERA and 3.51 FIP in 162 1/3 innings across 28 starts with a 27.0 strikeout percentage and a 11.1 walk percentage.
As former Astro Collin McHugh tossed a 14-pitch first inning as the opener for lefty Ryan Yarbrough, Houston went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position through three innings. The Astros wasted Yordan Alvarez’s two-out blooped single in the first inning and Kyle Tucker’s leadoff double in the second as neither runner even advanced a base. Martín Maldonado led off the third inning with a single and eventually advanced to third base but was marooned there as Alvarez struck out swinging.
The Rays saw their first action on the bases in the top of the fourth as Brandon Lowe drew an eight-pitch leadoff walk. McCullers struck out Randy Arozarena before Wander Franco reached on a fielder’s choice as Altuve threw to second base to force out Lowe. With the count at 2-2, McCullers delivered a ball in the dirt to Nelson Cruz and Franco took off for second base. Maldonado fired a throw to Altuve and the umpire initially called Franco safe, but the Astros challenged and got the call overturned to end the frame.
Maldonado’s play set Houston up to score first in the bottom of the inning. After Yuli Gurriel’s leadoff single, Tucker fell behind in the count 0-2 against Yarbrough but battled back to earn a nine-pitch walk. Correa then delivered his three-run bomb for his 25th home run of the season, a career high.
Ji-Man Choi spoiled McCullers’ no-hitter with a leadoff single against the shift in the sixth inning. He was out at second base as Mike Zunino reached on a forceout before McCullers sent Joey Wendle down swinging. But Lowe whittled the Astros’ advantage to 3-2 with a two-out, two-run homer that hooked just fair in right field. Arozarena’s softly hit, broken-bat single down the right-field line brought Franco to the plate as the potential go-ahead run.
The Rays shortstop sent a ground ball toward third base and raced Alex Bregman’s throw. Franco appeared to have an infield single before the Astros used their second challenge of the night. Like the first, it was successful. Houston escaped with its lead narrowed but still intact.
Although the Astros did not put another runner in scoring position for the rest of the game, the bullpen shut the door.
Ryne Stanek entered for the seventh inning to face his former team. He struck out the first batter he faced before allowing a one-out single. The Astros nearly turned a double play on Manuel Margot’s ground ball but he beat out Altuve’s throw to first base, leaving Tampa Bay with one runner on and two outs. Stanek induced a flyout to stymie a rally.
In the eighth inning, Kendall Graveman hit the Rays leadoff batter with a pitch before coaxing a flyout. Pinch-runner Kevin Kerimaier strayed from first base and was not dissuaded by a pickoff attempt. He should have been. Graveman and Maldonado combined for a strikeout-caught stealing double play to neutralize another threat.
Danger returned briefly after Ryan Pressly took over in the ninth inning. He issued a leadoff walk before Altuve’s fielding error on a routine ground ball put two on with no outs. Both men immediately achieved redemption by teaming Gurriel for a 3-4-1 double play on Cruz’s hard-hit ground ball.
The fans rose to their feet, already tasting victory. Pressly delivered a full-count pitch. Yandy Díaz batted it toward third base. Pressly raised both arms in the air, Bregman made the requisite throw and cannons punctuated the roars of the crowd.
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