The Kansas City Royals beat the Houston Astros 7-2 in Game 5 of the ALDS. They will host the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday for Game 1 of the ALCS.
The last time the two teams met in the ALCS was in 1985. That year the ALCS went from a best three of five to a best four out of seven format. The Jays blew a three games to one lead and the Royals would go on to win their only World Series title.
Coming back to the present, the Astros got the upper hand in the 2nd inning when Luis Valbuena hit a two-run home run off Royals starter Johnny Cueto. But that was it for the Astros. Cueto retired the final 19 hitters he faced and Royals closer Wade Davis got the final three outs.
The Royals got on the board in the fourth when Lorenzo Cain ran from first to home on an Eric Hosmer single after Carlos Gomez fell down in the outfield. K.C. would take the lead on a two-run double by Alex Rios and would add a run on a sacrifice fly by Ben Zobrist.
It was a close until the eighth when Astros manager A.J. Hinch opted to bring probable AL Cy Young winner Dallas Keuchel. It did not pay off as he gave up a three run home run to Kendrys Morales which put the game out of reach.
It was not a good day for Texas in baseball as the Rangers were eliminated in their series against the Blue Jays earlier today. The Rangers blew a two games to none lead against the Jays while the Astros had a 6-2 lead against the Royals in the 8th inning of Game 4. However, I defy anyone who said both the Astros and the Rangers would make the post-season in 2015. Both teams exceeded all expectations this year. There’s a good chance this isn’t the last we see of post-season baseball in the Lone Star state.
The Royals and Blue Jays will be an interesting match up given their brawl in early August shortly after the Jays acquired Troy Tulowitzki and David Price. I am convinced that this fight as much as any other reason brought the Jays together on their surge towards the AL East. You can be sure the Jays haven’t forgotten.
I see the Royals and Blue Jays partying like it’s 1985 with Toronto winning the ALCS in seven games with Jose Bautista winning the ALCS MVP.
