Astros Blank Rays, Clinch AL West Title With 4-0 Victory
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — It's been a long time since the Tampa Bay Rays have gotten roughed up at home, but the big, bad Houston Astros did just that on Monday night.
The Astros stifled Rays bats, and got some timely bloop hits in a 4-0 victory that clinched the American League West title for them with two-plus weeks to go in the regular season.
The Rays had only five hits all night, but also drew five walks. The problem, though, was that none of them made it home. And it made for a rare tough night under the roof at Tropicana Field.
Since Aug. 12, more than five weeks ago, the Rays had been 16-3 at home, with all three losses by one run. But the Astros, the best team in the American League, were a different animal, and it showed. The Rays also lost another series opener and, somewhat inexplicably, are now 20-27 in the first game of series, with three such losses. They are 82-65 overall.
"I thought we hit the ball pretty hard the early part of the night but didn't have much to show about it,'' Rays manager Kevin Cash said. "We had guys on base in the first inning
When you get shut out, any runs you give up are too many. That was certainly the case Monday. Drew Rasmussen got the start for the Rays, and gave up a leadoff homer to Jose Altuve on a 3-1 count. But he was great after that, plowing through five innings by retiring 13 batters in a row.
"I thought he looked great,'' Cash said. "They are a very talented lineup. He was awesome, just that sixth inning.''
Yes, the sixth inning. That's where it got away from Rasmussen (10-6) and the Rays. Altuve got an infield single, making contact on a slider outside the zone. Rasmussen then walked Jeremy Pena and Yordan Alvarez followed with a single, scoring Altuve and giving the Astros a 2-0 lead. Pena went to third, and Alvarez advanced to second on the throw.
Alex Bregman was next, and Rasmussen got ahead 1-2 on him with the infield playing in. He threw a slider far off the plate, but Bregman reached out and blooped a broken-bat single to left that scored two runs.
Both hits from and Altuve and Bregman were off good pitches, but Rasmussen, who's as tough on himself as anyone, wouldn't beg off on the back luck, That was on him, he said. It was his second loss in a row after losing 5-1 in Toronto last Wednesday.
"This is game two in a row with an inability to put guys away with two strikes,'' he said. "I thought I did a better job of executing today and I don't feel like I gave up a lot of hard contact today outside of the homer.
"I thought it was a quality pitch with quality location (to Bregman). They weren't hit hard, but they were hit in the right spot. That happens.
Even with retiring 13 in a row, Rasmussen said it's still going to be hard to move off of this one quickly. He was good, just not good enough.
"It still sucks. At the end of the day, their ability to put the ball in play took us out of the game, and that falls on me. My responsibility as a starter is to keep us in the game and give us a chance, and that sixth inning really hampered what we could do.''
The Rays' playoff situation didn't change much Monday despite the loss. They are now one game behind idle Toronto for the top wild-card spot and the home-field advantage in the first round that comes with it. Seattle beat the Los Angeles Angels to move within a half-game of the Rays, but the Baltimore Orioles lost 11-0 to Detroit, to remain 5 1/2 games behind the Rays with 15 to go. The Rays' magic number is now 10.
The Astros (97-51) are now eight games ahead of the New York Yankees for the best record in the American League, and are closing in on securing the top seed in the AL playoffs. Their magic number is seven. This is the sixth straight postseason for the Astros, and their fifth division title in the past six years.
Luis Garcia (13-8) pitched five scoreless for Houston and Hunter Brown pitched three innings of two-hit relief. Hector Neris closed it out in the ninth, giving Houston its league-leading 16th shutout of the season.
The two teams meet again on Tuesday night, with Tampa Bay's Shane McClanahan (12-5, 2.13 ERA) taking on right-hander Christian Javier (9-9, 2.87 ERA). The game starts at 6:40 p.m. ET.
VIDEO: Watch Drew Rasmussen's postgame interview
Tampa Bay starter Drew Rasmussen discusses his troubles in the sixth inning of a 4-0 loss to the Houston Astros on Monday night at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla. The Astros clinched the American League West title with the win.
Tom Brew is the publisher of Inside The Rays, and has been with the Sports Illustrated/FanNation network for three years. He is an award-winning writer and editor who has spent most of his four-decade career at the Tampa Bay Times, Indianapolis Star and South Florida Sun-Sentinel. He has written four books.