Astros win series ahead of crucial trip

HOUSTON -- The Astros’ 8-4 win over the Rangers in the series finale Thursday afternoon at Minute Maid Park completed a stretch in which the defending American League champions surged in the standings by winning 15 of 21 games -- 16 of which were played at home.

The Astros, who have climbed to within two games of the first-place A’s, now face perhaps their most challenging portion of the schedule with an 11-game road trip through California. A stretch of nine games in seven days begins with a series opener Friday in Anaheim against the Angels.

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“This is a big stretch for us,” Astros outfielder George Springer said. “It’s a long stretch. … It’s going to be a grind.”

The Astros will likely get All-Star third baseman Alex Bregman back from a hamstring injury at some point in the next few days, and starting pitcher Jose Urquidy, who’s missed the entire season, is expected to start one of the games in Saturday’s doubleheader in Anaheim. Veteran relievers Chris Devenski and Brad Peacock could be back somewhere along the way in California as well.

“We want to play our best baseball down the stretch,” Bregman said.

Certainly, the Astros don’t want to look ahead, but a five-game series against the A’s looms, beginning Monday in Oakland. The teams will play a doubleheader Tuesday that includes a makeup game from Sunday’s game that was postponed due to a positive COVID-19 test by a member of the A’s traveling party.

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Because of the expanded playoffs -- the top two teams in each division, plus two additional Wild Card Series teams, will make the postseason -- the Astros are all but a lock to play in October once again. But winning a fourth consecutive AL West title would mean running down an A’s team that swept the Astros in Oakland on Aug. 7-9.

“You can't figure that you’re going to the playoffs until you’re in the playoffs,” Astros manager Dusty Baker said. “We can’t think that way. No. 1, if there is somebody that is going to win the division, it might as well be us. We’re within reach. We’ve definitely got to do much better than the trip we had last time out west. We’re looking forward to it.”

The trip ends with two games in Dodger Stadium against the National League-leading Dodgers, who won two contentious games at Minute Maid Park on July 28-29. A benches-clearing incident in one of those games led to Dodgers pitcher Joe Kelly being handed a five-game suspension.

The Astros are 2-8 in their last 10 road games, including sweeps at the hands off the A’s and Padres (Aug. 21-23). Baker has said his team found it hard adapting to the coronavirus protocols on the road, which limit the players and staff to staying in their hotels while on the road.

“I think this one will be better because we know how to deal with the situation -- the isolation, confinement -- that we were going through the first time on the West Coast,” he said.

On Thursday, the Astros jumped on Rangers ace Lance Lynn for four runs in the first inning, capped by a three-run homer from Aledmys Díaz, and they rode another strong outing from Zack Greinke. He held the Rangers to three runs and six hits while striking out a season-high nine batters in six innings. Michael Brantley went 6-for-12 in the Rangers series with nine RBIs.

“It was really big to win the series,” Baker said. “Michael Brantley had a huge series. That was a big, big hit he got with two outs [in the eighth to drive in two runs]. The rubber match, that getaway day, it creates a sweep or prevents a sweep, or you win the series. That’s what we did.”