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2026 AL Standings: Astros' 4-run choke job costly in pathetic AL West battle vs. Rangers
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- 2026 AL Standings: Astros' 4-run choke job costly in pathetic AL West battle vs. Rangers
2026 AL Standings: Astros' 4-run choke job costly in pathetic AL West battle vs. Rangers appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The Houston Astros and Texas Rangers are battling it out. Both have losing records (78-80) and are duking it out for the American League West Division title.
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So whoever wins will carry an added stigma. On Wednesday, the Astros played the Seattle Mariners . Houston gave up a 4-o lead to the Mariners, resulting in a 6-5 loss.
After the game, manager Joe Espada recognized the loss for what it was, per Brian McTaggart of MLB.com.
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"Tough one," Espada said. "We used our entire arsenal there trying to get through that one. Tough loss. But we've got another one tomorrow."
Closer Josh Hader , who couldn't close it out, acknowledged the loss. But at the same time, he offered a glimmer of hope.
"Any time we can get ahead by a game, that's what you want," Hader said. "We came into this road trip trying to win them all. It sucks that we lost this one and how we did, but we've still got to play four more games. We've got to play good baseball and finish out strong. We've still got the tiebreaker and that's fortunate for us, but we can't bank on that. We've got to win out and hopefully we look up and we're in the playoffs."
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The Astros have been struggling lately . However, they hold the head-to-head tiebreaker advantage over the Rangers.
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Meanwhile, the Rangers lost to the New York Mets 7-2. The Astros will close the regular season against the Athletics this weekend. The Rangers will finish with the Minnesota Twins .
Related: Rangers or Astros likely to reach embarrassing new low for MLB division winner
