Astros vs. Rangers: Live updates, highlights as Adolis García gives Texas first lead in front of home crowd

Jose Altuve provided the postseason fireworks the Astros had been waiting for. Down 4-2 in the ninth inning against the Rangers’ ace closer José LeClerc, Altuve blasted a three-run home run just over the wall to give Houston a 5-4 lead. The go-ahead (and eventual game-winning) shot came just an inning after a benches-clearing brawl between the in-state rivals that promised to heat up an already sizzling ALCS.

Before the stunning blow, the Astros found themselves behind thanks to an Adolis García clutch home run off Justin Verlander, a welcome albeit brief hope that the Rangers were snapping out of their offensive funk. Alas, the funk was not snapped enough and the Astros now lead the best-of-seven series 3-2.

Jordan Montgomery gave the Rangers 5 1/3 solid innings and Nathaniel Lowe helped out with a solo home run, but the typically formidable Astros offense was too much. Beyond Altuve, Alex Bregman went deep for a second straight game.

The ALCS now heads back to Houston with the Astros up 3-2 with a chance to clinch yet another pennant as soon as Sunday.

Now for some takeaways from a classic Game 5. 

Jose Altuve dropped a bomb on the Rangers’ hopes

With two on and no out and the Astros down 4-2 in the ninth, Houston’s franchise player conjured up one of the biggest hits of his career: 

That’s Altuve’s 26th career postseason home run, and it turned a 4-2 deficit into a 5-4 lead. It also pushed Game 5 of the ALCS into “instant classic” territory. Also: 

Rangers closer José LeClerc had been going for a four-out save, and he had to sit quite a long time in the bottom of the eight in part because of a near-brawl detailed below. It’s probably no accident that he walked the first two batters he faced in front of Altuve. The second-pitch changeup wasn’t a terrible offering, but Altuve is quite adept at handling low-and-inside pitches, as was on display right there in stunning and series-changing fashion.

Adolis García almost flipped the script

The Texas offense had been in a funk, particularly with runners in scoring position, but Garcia in the sixth addressed those concerns with one authoritative swing. 

Other than allowing an opposite-field home run to Nathaniel Lowe on a high-and-outside fastball, future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander had been cruising. That changed in the sixth, as the Rangers used a one-out double and a single to put runners on the corners for Garcia. The slugging outfielder was seeing Verlander for the third time in Game 5, and as we know that often spells trouble for a starting pitcher, even one as great as Verlander. Speaking of which: 

That’s 108 mph and 396 feet off the bat, and it’s also a 2-1 deficit turned into a 4-2 lead, albeit one that would not last. It also merits an appreciation of Garcia’s appreciation: 

As for Verlander, Garcia’s clout occasioned some unfortunate history for him: 

On the other hand, to give up that many postseason home runs you have to pitch a lot of postseason games, which is sort of the point of the whole endeavor. As well, something tells us Verlander is fine with all of that given the ultimate outcome of Game 5. 

Semien’s struggles at the plate turned into bad luck at the plate

Marcus Semien, Texas’ All-Star second baseman, is one heck of a hitter as middle infielders go, but his bat has gone quiet during the ALCS. He came into Game 5 with a slash line of .188/.235/.188 for this series, and on Friday he went 0 for 5. That fifth and final at-bat, though, was almost a signature moment for Semien. With the Rangers trailing by a run in the bottom of the ninth and two on with no outs, Semien came up, and he lined a slider from Ryan Pressly. The thump off the bat plus the angle at which it left Semien’s bat gave it an expected batting average of .770. Unfortunately for Semien, Grae Kessinger, who just entered the game at short, was in the right/wrong place: 

If that batted ball finds grass, then it’s probably a tie game with Texas in good position to push across the winning run. Instead, the rookie snared it.

There was almost a brawl

You saw Garcia’s home run celebration above, and his next time up he was drilled by a 99 mph fastball from reliever Bryan Abreu. As you’re about to see, Garcia plainly thought it was a purpose pitch, and we almost ended up with a brawl between the two in-state rivals: 

As though Game 5 didn’t already give us enough to talk about. No punches were thrown, but there was some jostling and elevated temperatures for sure. Garcia and Abreu were both ejected, and Houston manager Dusty Baker vociferously objected to losing Abreu, presumably based on the fact that it was still a close game with exceptionally high stakes. Baker was also run: 

All of this on some level may have traced back to another near-brawl between these two teams back in July. If nothing else, these tensions make an already compelling Game 6 even more of a must-watch.

Necessary follow-up: 

Now the scene shifts back to Houston

Game 6 is up next after a Saturday off day, and it’ll be an elimination game for Texas/potential pennant-clincher for the Astros. It’ll also occasion a pitching rematch of Game 2, as Nathan Eovaldi will oppose Framber Valdez. First pitch is scheduled for 8:03 p.m. ET. Will the Astros earn a trip back to the World Series and advance their efforts to become the first repeat champs since the 1999-2000 Yankees? Or will the Rangers force a Game 7 and stay alive in their bid to win the World Series for the first time in franchise history? We’ll know soon enough.