2020 Houston Astros season

2020 Houston Astros
American League West 2nd Place
Major League affiliations
American League (since 2013) AL West Division (since 2013)
Location
Minute Maid Park (since 2000) Houston, Texas (since 1962)
Results
Record	29–31 (.483)
Divisional place	2nd
Other information
Owner(s)	Jim Crane
General manager(s)	James Click
Manager(s)	Dusty Baker
Local television	AT&T SportsNet Southwest (Todd Kalas, Geoff Blum)
Local radio	KTRH 740 Weekday Night Games Sportstalk 790 Houston Astros Radio Network (Robert Ford, Steve Sparks, Geoff Blum) KLAT (Spanish) (Francisco Romero, Alex Treviño)
Stats	ESPN.com BB-reference
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The 2020 Houston Astros season was the 59th season for the Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise in Houston, Texas, their 56th as the Astros, eighth in the AL West division, and 21st at Minute Maid Park. The team entered the season as the defending champions of the American League. It was the first season played after their sign stealing scandal was made public during the previous offseason.

The season was shortened to a 60-game schedule due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.^[1] The 2020 All-Star Game was also canceled due to the delayed start to the season.

On September 25, by virtue of a loss by the Los Angeles Angels, the Astros clinched a playoff berth, making it their fourth consecutive postseason appearance, as well as their fifth in the last six years. The Astros finished the regular season 29–31, becoming the second American League team to reach the playoffs with a losing record, the first being the 1981 Kansas City Royals. They received the No. 6 seed in the newly expanded playoffs. On September 30, the Astros became the first sub-.500 team to win a playoff series, eliminating the Minnesota Twins in a two-game sweep in the Wild Card Series. The Astros advanced to the American League Division Series where they defeated the Oakland Athletics three games to one, batting in a historic 33 runs (and 12 home runs) across 35 innings. They then advanced to their fourth consecutive American League Championship Series, where they lost to the Tampa Bay Rays in seven games despite nearly completing a dramatic comeback in forcing a Game 7 after trailing three games to none.

After the season, pitcher Cristian Javier was named a finalist for the 2020 AL Rookie of the Year Award, finishing third in voting.

COVID-19 effects on season[]

On March 12, 2020, MLB announced that because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the start of the regular season would be delayed by at least two weeks in addition to the remainder of spring training being cancelled.^[2] Four days later, it was announced that the start of the season would be pushed back indefinitely due to the recommendation made by the CDC to restrict events of more than fifty people for eight weeks.^[3] On June 23, commissioner Rob Manfred unilaterally implemented a 60-game season. Players reported to training camps on July 1 in order to resume spring training and prepare for a July 24 Opening Day.^[4]

Offseason[]

Sign-stealing controversy[]

For years, some individuals on other teams had suspected the Astros of stealing signs, but there was no public reporting on the subject until November 2019, when The Athletic reporters Ken Rosenthal and Evan Drellich at The Athletic published an article detailing the team's activities. Mike Fiers, a pitcher who played for the Astros in 2017, told The Athletic that the organization used a video camera in center field to film the opposing catcher's signals to the pitcher regarding the next pitch. Astros players or team staffers watching the live camera feed behind the dugout used various audio cues to signal to the batter what type of pitch was coming next. MLB opened an investigation into the allegations and confirmed in January 2020 that the Astros illegally used a camera system to steal signs during the 2017 regular season and postseason, during which they won the World Series, as well as in part of the 2018 regular season. MLB found no evidence of illicit sign stealing in the 2019 season, in which the Astros advanced to the World Series but lost.

As a result, Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow and field manager A. J. Hinch were suspended for the entire 2020 season for failing to prevent the rules violations. The Astros were fined the maximum allowable $5 million and forfeited their first- and second-round picks in the 2020 and 2021 drafts. No players were punished because they had been given immunity by MLB in exchange for their cooperation.^[5] The Astros subsequently fired both Luhnow and Hinch on the day their suspensions were announced.^[6] MLB's investigation also determined that Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora helped mastermind the Astros' sign stealing while serving as Hinch's bench coach in 2017; Boston and Cora mutually parted ways the following day, and MLB later suspended Cora through the 2020 postseason. Carlos Beltrán was the only Astros player from 2017 who was specifically named in the report; he had been hired to manage the New York Mets in November 2019 but parted ways with the team after the results of MLB's investigation were announced.

Coaching staff changes[]

• On December 7, 2019, first base coach Don Kelly departed for the position of bench coach with the Pittsburgh Pirates, joining the coaching staff of newly hired manager Derek Shelton.^[7] The first base coach position went to Omar Lopez, a long-time manager in the Astros' minor league system.^[8]
• On January 13, Astros owner Jim Crane fired Jeff Luhnow and A. J. Hinch, after both were implicated in MLB's investigation into the Houston Astros' sign stealing scandal.^[9][10] Crane temporarily assumed control of baseball operations while a search was ongoing for new personnel.^[11]
• On January 29, the Astros hired Dusty Baker as the new manager for the 2020 season with an option for 2021.^[12]

Releases and departures[]

• On December 18, 2019, the New York Yankees announced they had signed RHP Gerrit Cole to a 9-year contract, which was rumored to be worth $324 million, the fourth-richest contract in MLB history.^[13][14][15] Cole had elected free agency at the conclusion of the 2019 season, and had rejected a $17.8 million qualifying offer from the Astros to return for 2020.^[16]

Signings[]

• Astros signed C Dustin Garneau to a 1-year contract
• Astros re-signed RHP Joe Smith to a 2-year contract
• Astros re-signed C Martín Maldonado to a 2-year contract
• Astros signed RHP Jared Hughes to a minor league contract

Regular season[]

Game log[]

2020 Game Log: 29–31 (Home: 20–8; Away: 9–23)
July: 4–3 (Home: 3–3; Away: 1–0) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Record 1 July 24 Mariners 8–2 Justin Verlander (1–0) Marco Gonzales (0–1) — 1–0 2 July 25 Mariners 7–2 Lance McCullers Jr. (1–0) Taijuan Walker (0–1) — 2–0 3 July 26 Mariners 6–7 Dan Altavilla (1–0) Chris Devenski (0–1) Taylor Williams (1) 2–1 4 July 27 Mariners 8–5 Brandon Bielak (1–0) Kendall Graveman (0–1) Roberto Osuna (1) 3–1 5 July 28 Dodgers 2–5 Brusdar Graterol (1–1) Framber Valdez (0–1) Kenley Jansen (1) 3–2 6 July 29 Dodgers 2–4 (13) Dennis Santana (1–0) Cy Sneed (0–1) — 3–3 7 July 31 @ Angels 9–6 Brandon Bielak (2–0) Matt Andriese (0–1) Andre Scrubb (1) 4–3
August: 15–11 (Home: 11–2; Away: 4–9) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Record 8 August 1 @ Angels 4–5 (10) Ryan Buchter (2–0) Nivaldo Rodríguez (0–1) — 4–4 9 August 2 @ Angels 6–5 (11) Blake Taylor (1–0) Jacob Barnes (0–2) — 5–4 10 August 4 @ Diamondbacks 8–2 Cristian Javier (1–0) Madison Bumgarner (0–2) — 6–4 11 August 5 @ Diamondbacks 7–14 Robbie Ray (1–2) Lance McCullers Jr. (1–1) — 6–5 12 August 6 @ Diamondbacks 4–5 Junior Guerra (1–0) Ryan Pressly (0–1) — 6–6 13 August 7 @ Athletics 2–3 (13) J. B. Wendelken (1–0) Cy Sneed (0–2) — 6–7 14 August 8 @ Athletics 1–3 Frankie Montas (2–1) Framber Valdez (0–2) Liam Hendriks (5) 6–8 15 August 9 @ Athletics 2–7 Jesús Luzardo (1–0) Cristian Javier (1–1) Burch Smith (1) 6–9 16 August 10 Giants 6–4 Lance McCullers Jr. (2–1) Logan Webb (1–1) Ryan Pressly (1) 7–9 17 August 11 Giants 6–7 (10) Trevor Gott (1–0) Cy Sneed (0–3) Tyler Rogers (1) 7–10 18 August 12 Giants 5–1 Zack Greinke (1–0) Caleb Baragar (2–1) — 8–10 19 August 14 Mariners 11–1 Framber Valdez (1–2) Nestor Cortes Jr. (0–1) — 9–10 20 August 15 Mariners 2–1 Cristian Javier (2–1) Nick Margevicius (0–1) Ryan Pressly (2) 10–10 21 August 16 Mariners 3–2 Ryan Pressly (1–1) Erik Swanson (0–2) — 11–10 22 August 17 Rockies 2–1 Brandon Bielak (3–0) Kyle Freeland (2–1) Blake Taylor (1) 12–10 23 August 18 Rockies 2–1 (11) Andre Scrubb (1–0) Jairo Díaz (0–1) — 13–10 24 August 19 @ Rockies 13–6 Framber Valdez (2–2) Ryan Castellani (0–1) — 14–10 25 August 20 @ Rockies 10–8 Brooks Raley (1–0) Germán Márquez (2–4) Ryan Pressly (3) 15–10 26 August 21 @ Padres 3–4 Javy Guerra (1–0) Lance McCullers Jr. (2–2) Emilio Pagán (1) 15–11 27 August 22 @ Padres 2–13 Zach Davies (4–2) Brandon Bielak (3–1) — 15–12 28 August 23 @ Padres 3–5 Craig Stammen (3–1) Enoli Paredes (0–1) Emilio Pagán (2) 15–13 29 August 24 Angels 11–4 Framber Valdez (3–2) Patrick Sandoval (0–4) — 16–13 30 August 25 (1) Angels 6–3 (7) Cristian Javier (3–1) José Suárez (0–2) Ryan Pressly (4) 17–13 31 August 25 (2) Angels 5–12 (7) Félix Peña (2–0) Brandon Bielak (3–2) — 17–14 — August 26 Angels Postponed (Hurricane Laura); Makeup: September 5 — August 28 Athletics Postponed (strikes due to shooting of Jacob Blake); Makeup: August 29 32 August 29 (1) Athletics 4–2 (7) Lance McCullers Jr. (3–2) Chris Bassitt (2–2) Ryan Pressly (5) 18–14 33 August 29 (2) Athletics 6–3 (7) Zack Greinke (2–0) Frankie Montas (2–3) Ryan Pressly (6) 19–14 — August 30 Athletics Postponed (COVID-19); Makeup: September 8
September: 10–17 (Home: 6–5; Away: 4–12) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Record 34 September 1 Rangers 5–6 (10) Jonathan Hernández (5–0) Blake Taylor (1–1) Rafael Montero (7) 19–15 35 September 2 Rangers 2–1 Cristian Javier (4–1) Kolby Allard (0–4) Ryan Pressly (7) 20–15 36 September 3 Rangers 8–4 Zack Greinke (3–0) Lance Lynn (4–2) — 21–15 37 September 4 @ Angels 5–6 (11) Matt Andriese (2–2) Brooks Raley (0–1) — 21–16 38 September 5 (1) @ Angels 9–10 (7) Félix Peña (3–0) Enoli Paredes (1–2) — 21–17 39 September 5 (2) Angels 6–7 (7) Noé Ramirez (1–0) Humberto Castellanos (0–1) Ty Buttrey (5) 21–18 40 September 6 @ Angels 5–9 Mike Mayers (1–0) Framber Valdez (3–3) — 21–19 41 September 7 @ Athletics 0–6 Chris Bassitt (3–2) Cristian Javier (4–2) — 21–20 42 September 8 (1) Athletics 2–4 (7) Frankie Montas (3–3) Zack Greinke (3–1) Liam Hendriks (11) 21–21 43 September 8 (2) @ Athletics 5–4 (7) Enoli Paredes (2–2) J. B. Wendelken (1–1) Ryan Pressly (8) 22–21 44 September 9 @ Athletics 2–3 Liam Hendriks (3–0) Ryan Pressly (1–2) — 22–22 45 September 10 @ Athletics 1–3 Sean Manaea (4–2) José Urquidy (0–1) Liam Hendriks (12) 22–23 46 September 12 @ Dodgers 7–5 Josh James (1–0) Kenley Jansen (3–1) Ryan Pressly (9) 23–23 47 September 13 @ Dodgers 1–8 Victor González (3–0) Zack Greinke (3–2) — 23–24 48 September 15 Rangers 4–1 José Urquidy (1–1) Nick Goody (0–1) Ryan Pressly (10) 24–24 49 September 16 Rangers 0–1 Kyle Gibson (2–5) Ryan Pressly (1–3) — 24–25 50 September 17 Rangers 2–1 Framber Valdez (4–3) Jordan Lyles (1–5) Brooks Raley (1) 25–25 51 September 18 Diamondbacks 3–6 Zac Gallen (2–2) Luis García (0–1) Stefan Crichton (4) 25–26 52 September 19 Diamondbacks 3–2 Enoli Paredes (3–2) Luke Weaver (1–8) Ryan Pressly (11) 26–26 53 September 20 Diamondbacks 3–2 Blake Taylor (2–1) Junior Guerra (1–2) Ryan Pressly (12) 27–26 54 September 21 @ Mariners 1–6 Marco Gonzales (7–2) Lance McCullers Jr. (3–3) — 27–27 55 September 22 @ Mariners 6–1 Framber Valdez (5–3) Casey Sadler (1–2) — 28–27 56 September 23 @ Mariners 2–3 Nick Margevicius (2–3) Zack Greinke (3–3) Yoshihisa Hirano (4) 28–28 57 September 24 @ Rangers 12–4 Cristian Javier (5–2) Lance Lynn (6–3) — 29–28 58 September 25 @ Rangers 4–5 (10) Brett Martin (1–1) Enoli Paredes (3–3) — 29–29 59 September 26 @ Rangers 1–6 Jimmy Herget (1–0) Brandon Bielak (3–3) — 29–30 60 September 27 @ Rangers 4–8 Wes Benjamin (2–1) Chase De Jong (0–1) — 29–31
Legend:        = Win        = Loss        = Postponement Bold = Astros team member

Season standings[]

v t AL West	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
Oakland Athletics	36	24	0.600	—	22–10	14–14
Houston Astros	29	31	0.483	7	20–9	9–22
Seattle Mariners	27	33	0.450	9	14–10	13–23
Los Angeles Angels	26	34	0.433	10	16–15	10–19
Texas Rangers	22	38	0.367	14	16–14	6–24

v t Division Leaders	W	L	Pct.
Tampa Bay Rays	40	20	0.667
Oakland Athletics	36	24	0.600
Minnesota Twins	36	24	0.600

v t Division 2nd Place	W	L	Pct.
Cleveland Indians	35	25	0.583
New York Yankees	33	27	0.550
Houston Astros	29	31	0.483

v t Wild Card teams (Top two qualify for postseason)	W	L	Pct.	GB
Chicago White Sox	35	25	0.583	+3
Toronto Blue Jays	32	28	0.533	—
Seattle Mariners	27	33	0.450	5
Los Angeles Angels	26	34	0.433	6
Kansas City Royals	26	34	0.433	6
Baltimore Orioles	25	35	0.417	7
Boston Red Sox	24	36	0.400	8
Detroit Tigers	23	35	0.397	8
Texas Rangers	22	38	0.367	10

Record vs. opponents[]

2020 American League Records v t Source: AL Standings Head-to-head
Team	HOU	LAA	OAK	SEA	TEX	NL
Houston	—	4–6	3–7	7–3	5–5	10–10
Los Angeles	6–4	—	4–6	5–5	4–6	7–13
Oakland	7–3	6–4	—	6–4	7–3	10–10
Seattle	3–7	5–5	4–6	—	8–2	7–13
Texas	5–5	6–4	3–7	2–8	—	6–14

Roster[]

2020 Houston Astros
Roster
Pitchers 66 Bryan Abreu 63 Brandon Bailey 29 Joe Biagini 64 Brandon Bielak 72 Humberto Castellanos 0,69 Chase De Jong 47 Chris Devenski 77 Luis Garcia 21 Zack Greinke 39 Josh James 53 Cristian Javier 43 Lance McCullers Jr. 54 Roberto Osuna 60 Enoli Paredes 41 Brad Peacock 52 Cionel Pérez 55 Ryan Pressly 58 Brooks Raley 68 Nivaldo Rodríguez 71 Carlos Sanabria 70 Andre Scrubb 67 Cy Sneed 62 Blake Taylor 65 José Urquidy 59 Framber Valdez 35 Justin Verlander		Catchers 13 Dustin Garneau 15 Martín Maldonado 11 Garrett Stubbs Infielders 27 José Altuve  2 Alex Bregman  1 Carlos Correa 16 Aledmys Díaz 10 Yuli Gurriel 28 Taylor Jones  9 Jack Mayfield 31 Abraham Toro		Outfielders 23 Michael Brantley 22 Josh Reddick  4 George Springer  3 Myles Straw 30 Kyle Tucker Other batters 44 Yordan Álvarez		Manager 12 Dusty Baker Coaches 85 Javier Bracamonte (bullpen catcher) 37 Alex Cintrón (hitting) 17 Michael Collins (catching) 19 Joe Espada (bench) 18 Omar López (first base) 48 Josh Miller (bullpen)  8 Gary Pettis (third base) 46 Troy Snitker (hitting) 36 Chris Speier (quality control) 56 Brent Strom (pitching)

Postseason[]

Game log[]

2020 Postseason Game Log: (8–5)
ALWCS vs Twins: (2–0) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Record 1 September 29 @ Twins 4–1 Framber Valdez (1–0) Sergio Romo (0–1) — 1–0 2 September 30 @ Twins 3–1 Cristian Javier (1–0) Cody Stashak (0–1) Ryan Pressly (1) 2–0
ALDS vs Athletics: (3–1) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Record 1 October 5 @ Athletics 10–5 Blake Taylor (1–0) J. B. Wendelken (0–1) — 1–0 2 October 6 @ Athletics 5–2 Framber Valdez (1–0) Sean Manaea (0–1) Ryan Pressly (1) 2–0 3 October 7 Athletics 7–9 Liam Hendriks (1–0) Brooks Raley (0–1) — 2–1 4 October 8 Athletics 11–6 Cristian Javier (1–0) Frankie Montas (0–1) — 3–1 all games played at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, CA
ALCS vs Rays: (3–4) # Date Opponent Score Win Loss Save Record 1 October 11 @ Rays 1–2 Blake Snell (1–0) Framber Valdez (0–1) Diego Castillo (1) 0–1 2 October 12 @ Rays 2–4 Charlie Morton (1–0) Lance McCullers Jr. (0–1) Nick Anderson (1) 0–2 3 October 13 Rays 2–5 Ryan Yarbrough (1–0) José Urquidy (0–1) Diego Castillo (2) 0–3 4 October 14 Rays 4–3 Zack Greinke (1–0) Tyler Glasnow (0–1) Ryan Pressly (1) 1–3 5 October 15 Rays 4–3 Ryan Pressly (1–0) Nick Anderson (0–1) — 2–3 6 October 16 @ Rays 7–4 Framber Valdez (1–1) Blake Snell (1–1) Ryan Pressly (2) 3–3 7 October 17 @ Rays 2–4 Charlie Morton (2–0) Lance McCullers Jr. (0–2) Pete Fairbanks (1) 3–4 all games played at Petco Park in San Diego, CA

Wild Card Series[]

The Astros played the Twins in the Wild Card series at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Game 1[]

Zack Greinke got the ball for the Astros against Twins ace Kenta Maeda. Greinke pitched four innings, allowing 1 run. Framber Valdez relieved Greinke in the 5th inning, and pitched 5 scoreless innings. Meanwhile, George Springer tied the game with an RBI single, and the Astros scored 3 runs in the 9th off Sergio Romo & Caleb Thielbar.

Game 2[]

José Urquidy got the ball for the Astros against José Berríos. Urquidy pitched 4+1⁄3 innings, allowing 1 run, and was relieved by lefty Brooks Raley. Twins DH Nelson Cruz was the only source of offense for the Twins, as he drove in both runs for the Twins in the series. Cristian Javier pitched 3 scoreless innings, while Carlos Correa provided a go-ahead home run and the Astros got a 2 run single from breakout star Kyle Tucker. Pressly closed it out in the 9th inning to send the Astros to the ALDS.

Wild Card series roster[]

2020 Houston Astros
ALWCS Roster
Pitchers 21 Zack Greinke 39 Josh James 53 Cristian Javier 43 Lance McCullers Jr. 60 Enoli Paredes 55 Ryan Pressly 58 Brooks Raley 70 Andre Scrubb 67 Cy Sneed 62 Blake Taylor 65 José Urquidy 59 Framber Valdez		Catchers 13 Dustin Garneau 15 Martín Maldonado 11 Garrett Stubbs Infielders 27 José Altuve  2 Alex Bregman  1 Carlos Correa 16 Aledmys Díaz 10 Yuli Gurriel  9 Jack Mayfield 31 Abraham Toro		Outfielders 20 Chas McCormick 22 Josh Reddick  4 George Springer  3 Myles Straw 30 Kyle Tucker		Designated Hitters 23 Michael Brantley		Manager 12 Dusty Baker Coaches 85 Javier Bracamonte (bullpen catcher) 37 Alex Cintrón (hitting) 17 Michael Collins (catching) 19 Joe Espada (bench) 18 Omar Lopez (first base) 48 Josh Miller (bullpen)  8 Gary Pettis (third base) 46 Troy Snitker (hitting) 36 Chris Speier (quality control) 56 Brent Strom (pitching)

American League Division Series[]

The Astros faced their division rivals, the Oakland Athletics, in the ALDS. Due to the continuing COVID-19 pandemic, all games of the series were played at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

Game 1[]

The Astros announced that Lance McCullers Jr. would get the ball for game one against A's ace Chris Bassitt. A's DH Khris Davis got the scoring started with a two-run home run in the second inning, followed by a Sean Murphy solo shot in the third. The Astros responded with a solo home run from Alex Bregman and a game-tying home run from Carlos Correa in the top of the fourth. The A's responded quickly with a solo shot from Matt Olson to put the A's back in front, 4–3. Both starters lasted four innings. A Mark Canha sacrifice fly extended the A's lead to 5–3 in the fifth. The Astros took the lead in the sixth, when Josh Reddick reached on a fielding error with two outs and Martín Maldonado singled. George Springer then doubled to score Reddick José Altuve followed it up with a double to drive in both Maldonado and Springer giving the Astros a 6–5 lead. Michael Brantley singled in Altuve to make it 7–5. Correa hit his second home run of the game in the seventh to make it 8–5. The Astros then broke it open in the ninth inning with a Correa RBI single and a Yuli Gurriel sacrifice fly. Ryan Pressly worked a 1–2–3 ninth inning to seal the Game 1 victory for the Astros 10–5.

Game 2[]

Left-handed pitcher Framber Valdez started game two of the series against A's left hander Sean Manaea. A's DH Khris Davis hit another home run to give the A's the lead in the second inning. The Astros fought back and took the lead when George Springer hit a two-run home run in the third. The Astros added another run on a Correa RBI groundout in the fourth moving the lead to 3–1. The A's countered with a Chad Pinder solo home run in the fourth to narrow the lead to 3–2. Martín Maldonado and Springer hit back-to-back home runs in the fifth inning to push the Astro's lead to 5–2. Ryan Pressly picked up the save for the Astros as they moved the A's to the edge of elimination with a 2–0 game lead in the series.

Game 3[]

José Urquidy started Game 3 for Houston, while the A's started Jesús Luzardo. A's second baseman Tommy La Stella got the scoring started with a solo home run in the first inning. The Astros responded with a solo home run from José Altuve and a Correa RBI groundout to take the lead in the bottom of the first. The A's responded again with a solo home run from left fielder Mark Canha to tie the game at two. The A's took the lead in the fourth inning on a Matt Olson solo home run.. The A's would pushed the lead to two with a Marcus Semien solo shot in the fifth. However, Houston tied it in the bottom of the fifth inning with an Aledmys Díaz two-run home run. The Astros retook the lead later in the inning with a Michael Brantley RBI single, an Alex Bregman RBI double, and a Kyle Tucker RBI single. Trailing 7–4, the A's tied it in the top of the seventh on a Chad Pinder three-run home run. The A's added two more runs in the eighth inning to cap the scoring. A's closer Liam Hendriks pitched three scoreless innings to save the A's season and send the series to a Game 4.

Game 4[]

The A's started Frankie Montas while the Astros started Zack Greinke. A's outfielder Ramón Laureano got the scoring started with a three-run home run in the second. The Astros responded in the fourth inning with a two-run home run from Michael Brantley and a three-run home run by Carlos Correa. Trailing 5–3, the A's pulled within one on another home run from Laureano that chased Greinke from the game. Lefty Blake Taylor came in and got the final out of the fifth inning. In the bottom of the fifth, Brantley hit his secondnd home run of the game and Correa added an RBI single to make it 7–4. In the sixth, Kyle Tucker added an RBI single followed by another run-scoring single by Correa that to move the lead to 9–4. José Altuve added a two-run home run in the seventh to make it 11–4 Astros. The A's attempted to mount a comeback in the ninth when Marcus Semien drove in a run on a single and Tommy La Stella singled in Semien before Astros closer Ryan Pressly shut the door in the ninth to send the Astros to the ALCS.

Division series roster[]

2020 Houston Astros
ALDS Roster
Pitchers 77 Luis García 21 Zack Greinke 39 Josh James 53 Cristian Javier 43 Lance McCullers Jr. 60 Enoli Paredes 55 Ryan Pressly 58 Brooks Raley 70 Andre Scrubb 67 Cy Sneed 62 Blake Taylor 65 José Urquidy 59 Framber Valdez		Catchers 13 Dustin Garneau 15 Martín Maldonado 11 Garrett Stubbs Infielders 27 José Altuve  2 Alex Bregman  1 Carlos Correa 16 Aledmys Díaz 10 Yuli Gurriel 31 Abraham Toro		Outfielders 20 Chas McCormick 22 Josh Reddick  4 George Springer  3 Myles Straw 30 Kyle Tucker		Designated Hitters 23 Michael Brantley		Manager 12 Dusty Baker Coaches 85 Javier Bracamonte (bullpen catcher) 37 Alex Cintrón (hitting) 17 Michael Collins (catching) 19 Joe Espada (bench) 18 Omar Lopez (first base) 48 Josh Miller (bullpen)  8 Gary Pettis (third base) 46 Troy Snitker (hitting) 36 Chris Speier (quality control) 56 Brent Strom (pitching)

American League Championship Series[]

The Astros faced the No. 1-seeded Tampa Bay Rays in the ALCS. Due to the continuing COVID-19 pandemic, all games of the best-of-seven series were played at Petco Park in San Diego, California.

Game 1[]

The Astros started left-hander Framber Valdez, while the Rays started to left-hander Blake Snell in game one of the series The Astros got the scoring started with a solo home run from José Altuve in the first inning. The Rays tied it on a solo home run from Randy Arozarena in the fourth inning and took the lead in the fifth inning on a Mike Zunino RBI single. Blake Snell pitched five innings and allowed only one run. Valdez pitched six innings, giving up two runs on four hits. The Rays' bullpen pitched four scoreless innings in relief as the Rays held on for the 2–1 victory. The win gave the Rays a 1–0 lead in the series.

Game 2[]

The Astros started right hander Lance McCullers Jr., while the Rays started right hander Charlie Morton. The Rays got the scoring started with a 3-run home run from outfielder Manuel Margot. The Astros got on the board with a solo home run from shortstop Carlos Correa. The Rays added 1 more run from catcher Mike Zunino. The Astros started a rally in the 9th against Rays closer Nick Anderson, but only managed 1 run as the Astros fell into a 0–2 hole in the ALCS.

Game 3[]

The Rays started left-hander Ryan Yarbrough, while the Astros started right-hander José Urquidy in Game 3 of the series with the Astros becoming the home team. The Astros took another early lead on a José Altuve home run in the first. Still leading by one in the sixth, the Rays pushed across six runs on a two-run scoring single by Joey Wendle. A hit batter drove in another run and a double with the bases loaded by Hunter Renfroe gave the Rays a 5–1 lead. A Michael Brantley home run in the sixth pulled the Astros within three, but they could must no further as they lost their third straight game. The loss moved the Astros to the edge of elimination in a 3–0 series hole.

Game 4[]

The Rays started right hander Tyler Glasnow, while the Astros countered with Zack Greinke. The Astros took an early lead with another first inning home run from José Altuve and then added another run on an Altuve RBI double in the third. The Rays tied it at two in the fourth inning on an Randy Arozarena home run. George Springer hit a go-ahead two-run home run in the bottom of the fifth. The Rays drew within a run on a Willy Adames run-scoring double in the top of the ninth. Ryan Pressly was able to get the final out and move the series to Game 5 with the Astros trailing three-games-to-one.

Game 5[]

The Rays started Game 5 with an opener in right-hander John Curtiss, while the Astros started rookie right-hander Luis García. The Astros, in their last game as the home team in the series, got the scoring started with a leadoff home run in the bottom of the first from George Springer. The Rays tied it on a Brandon Lowe solo homer in the third. However, the Astros answered and took the lead in the bottom of the third with a two-run single from Michael Brantley. The Rays narrowed the lead to one with another home run from Randy Arozarena in the fifth. With only six outs remaining in the game, the Rays tied it in the top of the eighth on a Ji-man Choi solo home run. With the game still tied in the bottom of the ninth inning, Carlos Correa homered to straight away center field to give the Astros the 4–3 win and extend the series to a Game 6.

Game 6[]

Game 1 starter Framber Valdez started Game 6, while Blake Snell opposed him. The Rays got the scoring started with a Willy Adames RBI double. The Astros took the lead with a George Springer 2-run single, a José Altuve RBI double, and a Carlos Correa RBI single. Kyle Tucker added his first career postseason home run to make it a 5-1 Astros lead. The Astros took a 7–1 lead with a Michael Brantley RBI single & a Tucker sac fly. The Rays got back into the game with 2 home runs from Manuel Margot. Pressly shut the door in the 9th to force a Game 7 and make the Astros the 2nd team in MLB history to force a Game 7 after being down 3–0 in the series (The 2004 Red Sox are the other team).

Game 7[]

The Astros started Game 2 starter Lance McCullers Jr., while the Rays started Game 2 starter Charlie Morton. The Rays struck first on a 2-run home run from Randy Arozarena in the 1st. Catcher Mike Zunino added a solo home run to make 3-0 Rays in the 2nd. Zunino then added a sac fly in the 6th to make it 4–0. The Astros got on the board with a 2-run single from Carlos Correa. Pete Fairbanks shut the door in the 9th to send the Rays to the World Series and eliminate the Astros.

ALCS roster[]

2020 Houston Astros
ALCS Roster
Pitchers 69 Chase De Jong 77 Luis García 21 Zack Greinke 39 Josh James 53 Cristian Javier 43 Lance McCullers Jr. 60 Enoli Paredes 55 Ryan Pressly 58 Brooks Raley 70 Andre Scrubb 67 Cy Sneed 62 Blake Taylor 65 José Urquidy 59 Framber Valdez		Catchers 13 Dustin Garneau 15 Martín Maldonado 11 Garrett Stubbs Infielders 27 José Altuve  2 Alex Bregman  1 Carlos Correa 16 Aledmys Díaz 10 Yuli Gurriel 31 Abraham Toro		Outfielders 22 Josh Reddick  4 George Springer  3 Myles Straw 30 Kyle Tucker		Designated Hitters 23 Michael Brantley		Manager 12 Dusty Baker Coaches 85 Javier Bracamonte (bullpen catcher) 37 Alex Cintrón (hitting) 17 Michael Collins (catching) 19 Joe Espada (bench) 18 Omar Lopez (first base) 48 Josh Miller (bullpen)  8 Gary Pettis (third base) 46 Troy Snitker (hitting) 36 Chris Speier (quality control) 56 Brent Strom (pitching)

Farm system[]

Level	Team	League	Manager
AAA	Round Rock Express	Pacific Coast League
AA	Corpus Christi Hooks	Texas League
A-Advanced	Fayetteville Woodpeckers	Carolina League
A	Quad Cities River Bandits	Midwest League
A-Short Season	Tri-City ValleyCats	New York–Penn League
Rookie	GCL Astros	Gulf Coast League
Rookie	DSL Astros	Dominican Summer League

Charitable efforts during Coronavirus pandemic[]

As of mid-April 2020, Astro teammates Carlos Correa and Martin Maldonado, along with fellow Major Leaguers such as Francisco Lindor and Eddie Rosario, as well as musical stars, have already shipped 26 pallets of medical supplies to the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico. Astros owner Jim Crane has waived all shipping and logistic charges through his company Crane Worldwide Logistics.^[17]

See also[]

• List of Major League Baseball annual triples leaders

References[]

External links[]

• Houston Astros season official site
• 2020 Houston Astros season at Baseball Reference