Astros Return to Postseason, Clinch Playoff Berth for 7th Straight Year

The Astros defeated the Diamondbacks 1-0 Saturday night at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona. With the win, the Astros clinched a postseason berth for the seventh year in a row.

Jack Vita | Sep 30, 2023

Astros Return to Postseason, Clinch Playoff Berth for 7th Straight Year /

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Houston Astros

For the seventh year in a row, the Houston Astros are going to the postseason.

Houston clinched a postseason berth with its 1-0 victory Saturday night over the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona.

For the second straight night, Houston kept Arizona's offense quiet. Saturday, it was Justin Verlander's turn to shut down the Diamondbacks' lineup. Verlander allowed no runs off two hits and three walks across five innings pitched in the Astros' victory. Bryan Abreu picked up his 25th save of the season. The Astros scored the game's lone run off of Jose Abreu's RBI double in the top of the fourth inning.

Despite losing, the Diamondbacks clinched their first trip to the postseason since 2017, Saturday, thanks to the Cincinnati Reds' 15-6 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals. After Saturday, all 12 playoff teams have been determined. Seeding for the playoffs, however, is still up in the air.

The Diamondbacks (84-77) are a half-game back of the Miami Marlins (84-76) for the third and final AL Wild Card spot. However, the Marlins had a game Thursday night at Citi Field against the New York Mets that was suspended and never completed. It remains unclear as to whether or not the Marlins will have to travel back to New York to play the remaining four outs of Thursday's game, or not. The game's outcome could play a critical role in seeding the National League Playoffs.

The Texas Rangers eliminated the Seattle Mariners from contention Saturday, with their 6-1 win at T-Mobile Park. The Rangers remain one game in front of the Astros. If Seattle defeats Texas Sunday and Houston completes a sweep of Arizona, the Astros will win the American League West for the third straight year, and the sixth time in seven years. In this case, the Astros would force a tie. Houston owns the tiebreaker over Texas, having won nine of their 13 games against the Rangers in 2023.

A division title will mean the difference between having a first round bye in the postseason, and playing on the road in the AL Wild Card Series next week.

Houston will play its final game of the regular season Sunday against the Diamondbacks. First pitch is scheduled for 3:10 p.m. ET.

Published Sep 30, 2023

JACK VITA

Jack Vita is a writer and contributor to Sports Illustrated's Inside the Astros, and host of the Jack Vita Show, a popular sports podcast available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube and wherever podcasts are found. Jack is a 2017 graduate of Valparaiso University, in northwest Indiana. Since completing his degree, Jack has created his own independent sports media outlet (JackVita.com) and podcast (the Jack Vita Show). He has featured prominent guests from the worlds of sports and entertainment including Brian Urlacher, Scot Pollard, Bob Nightengale, Dan O'Dowd, and Survivor icons Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick, Cirie Fields, Danni Boatwright and "the Dragon Slayer", Coach Benjamin Wade. While studying at Valparaiso, Jack was the school newspaper's beat writer for the Valpo Crusaders men's basketball team, which won three straight Horizon League championships from 2015-2017. Traveling to cover the team, Jack had a front row seat to one of the nation's best mid-major teams, headlined by future NBA Draft pick Alec Peters and coached by NCAA Tournament hero Bryce Drew. Jack hosted a weekly sports radio show and provided play-by-play and color commentary services for ESPN 3 and the university's student radio station, WVUR-FM, 95.1 The Source, covering Valparaiso men's soccer, women's basketball, softball and volleyball. Jack also covered these sports, in addition to men's and women's tennis, baseball and women's soccer for the school newspaper, The Torch. While he was in college, Jack interned for and co-hosted Jewell On Sports, a sports radio program on AM 1050 WLIP in Kenosha, Wisconsin. There, he interviewed various pro athletes such as Ahman Green, Javon Walker and Javier Arenas, in addition to talking sports with the late, great Brad Jewell. Jack also interned for 22nd Century Media, a now defunct newspaper corporation that provided news to the North Shore of Chicago. With 22nd Century Media, Jack wrote post-game recaps, feature stories about local athletes, reviews of local restaurants and compiled the newspaper's "Pet of the Week" and "Athlete of the Week" sections, while providing copy-editing services. Before attending Valparaiso, Jack enrolled at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin, where he studied for two years before transferring. He is a high school graduate of New Trier Township High School in Winnetka, Illinois. You can follow Jack on Twitter @JackVitaShow, subscribe to his podcast, the Jack Vita Show, wherever podcasts are found, and reach him via email at jack@jackvita.com.