The stage is set for the next round in the MLB postseason with the two ALDS over. The Toronto Blue Jays advance on a 6-3 win over the Texas Rangers with a Jose Bautista homerun to finish the job, while the Kansas City Royals knock out the Houston Astros with a 7-2 win following a brilliant performance on the mound from Johnny Cueto.
Blue Jays beat Rangers 6-3, Win Series 3-2
In a game of nine innings, everything in this one came down to a crazy seventh. An error by catcher Russell Martin allowing Rougned Odor to score and put the Rangers up by one run, and then three errors by Texas building up to the great finale. The Blue Jays manage to turn around a series after losing the first two games at home, and now move on to the ALCS for the first time since 1993, which ended in them winning the World Series.
So what happened after Odor scored? A lot of arguing, reviewing, dealy (18 minutes) and fans throwing garbage onto the field. Then came the Rangers errors, Kevin Pillar scoring off of Josh Donaldson ground out and then the big one: Jose Bautista hitting a three-run homer with two outs. The Rangers never recovered from that one, as Roberto Osuna finished the job with his second save of the series, setting up a meeting with the Kansas City Royals in the ALCS.
Royals beat Astros 7-2, Win Series 3-2
Just like in the other AL game, the visitors from Texas took a 2-0 lead. Luis Valbuena hit a two run homer in the second inning, but that was basically the last time Johnny Cueto made a mistake in this game. Cueto ended up striking out 8 batters in 8 innings, allowing just two hits the entire game. He was basically perfect after the home run by Valbuena. And on top of that, came the run support the Royals have been inconsistent with this postseason.
An Eric Hosmer RBI single in the 4th inning finally put the Royals on the scoreboard, and an Alex Rios double brought in two runners home to turn the game around, signaling that the Royals aren’t planning on having an early exit this year. A Ben Zobrist sacrifice fly allowed Rios himself to reach home plate, and the finale came in the 8th inning, as Kendrys Morales hit a three-run homer to finish the game in the perfect way, shutting down the series.