Can Astros rally in ALCS, or did Rangers provide knockout punch in Game 2?

The Texas Rangers simply provided a substantial blow to the Houston Astros with their 5-4 win at Minute Maid Park in Game 2 of the American League Championship series.

There are factors why Monday may haveactually been a knockout punch from Texas — however likewise reasons for hope with Houston. 

Let’s start with the Rangers.

First, Texas now goes up 2-0 in the series, increasing its possibilities of winning to 84%, based on historic patterns. But the figure that needsto make Rangers fans feel specifically excellent is that throughout the Astros’ existing dynastic run of 7 straight ALCS looks and 2 World Series titles, they have neverever won a series in which they have routed by at least 2 videogames. In other words, the method to kill the inescapable Astros is to go up 2-0 on them in a series. That is precisely what the Rangers simply did.

The series now moves back to the Rangers’ home: Globe Life Field up north in Arlington, where Bruce Bochy’s team hasactually been one of the finest home groups in baseball this year. Texas had the second-best run differential and fourth-best record at home in the routine season. 

The Rangers grow in that ballpark and I haveactually heard numerous gamers talk about how much they love playing there. The finest part for them is that they now have a opportunity to close out the series without heading back to Houston, after which they would have home-field benefit versus either of their possible World Series challengers, the Philadelphia Phillies or the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Rangers haveactually been roadway warriors hence far in these playoffs, with 6 of their 7 wins coming away from Arlington — their lower seeding and sweeps in the previous 2 rounds haveactually supplied them with just one home videogame to this point.

Another core characteristic of these Rangers are how streaky they are. In the routine season, they were the just group to lose 8 videogames in a row and win 8 videogames in a row. Clearly, they are on a huge heatingunit right now, with a best 7-0 record therefore far in the postseason. That’s connected for the second-longest playoff-opening win streak in baseball history. The Rangers can tie the 2014 Kansas City Royals for the leading area Wednesday night in Game 3 (FS1, 8: 03 p.m. ET). 

The last factor why the Rangers may haveactually constructed an overwhelming lead in this series is since of how complex they are. In Sunday’s Game 1, they rode a gem from Jordan Montgomery. On Monday, their offense emerged for 4 first-inning runs off tested playoff veteran Framber Valdez. This group can win in so lotsof various methods right now, which oughtto be scary for the Astros.

On the other hand, if any Houston Astros group over their whole seven-year dynasty has the capability to come back from being down 2-0 in a series, it’s this one. The Astros are simply as comfy on the roadway as the Rangers are at home. Houston was by far the finest roadway group in baseball this year by run differential. And they truly control up in Arlington, where they went 6-1 in the routine season. 

In reality, simply a coupleof weeks ago, the Astros tookatrip to Globe Life Field and controlled the Rangers in historical style, striking the most home runs over a three-game series in MLB history. 

One of the Rangers’ beginning pitchers in that videogame was Max Scherzer, who will take the ball Wednesday for the veryfirst time this postseason. This cuts both methods — Scherzer not just has experience in the playoffs, he has experience pounding the Astros in the playoffs from his time with the Washington Nationals in the 2019 World Series. Getting him back is a substantial increase for the Rangers’ undermanned beginning rotation. But the Astros needto feel excellent about dealingwith him as well, and not simply because of their current success.

Scherzer is coming off a teres significant muscle pressure and has not pitched in a videogame consideringthat Sept.12 That is the exactsame injury my bro Justin dealt with at the start of this season, when he and Scherzer were both still on the Mets. It was a madecomplex injury to return from. Justin had to go on a minor-league rehabilitation project, then was on a pitch count for his veryfirst coupleof begins with New York, and he was not extremely efficient for the veryfirst month he was active listbelow the injury.

Of course, Scherzer states he is “ready to go” and the Rangers plainly feel excellent adequate about his status to start him. But he’s expected to come back and pitch in the greatest videogame of the season and appearance like vintage Scherzer? In the Astros’ position, I’d still feel quite excellent about my possibilities versus him.

But beyond him — the Rangers requirement a Game 4 starter, and we have no concept who it will be. Maybe Bochy will turn to Andrew Heaney, who began Game 1 of the ALDS in Baltimore and pitched well, however has hadahardtime at times this season. On the Astros’ side, Cristian Javier will start Game 3, the greatest start he hasactually made consideringthat he started the Astros’ integrated no-hitter in Game 4 of last year’s World Series. José Urquidy is mostlikely to start Game 4 after Javier; he’s coming off a strong ALDS Game 4 start in Minnesota.

That puts more pressure on the Rangers’ bullpen, which hardly held up Monday. Both Aroldis Chapman and José Leclerc looked unsteady — Chapman offered up a home run to Yordan Álvarez, while Leclerc offered up some tough contact and had to work around back-to-back strolls when he wentinto in the 8th inning. Texas’ bullpen was its weakpoint throughout the routine season however hasactually carriedout much muchbetter in October.

Still, the more outs the Astros can force the Rangers’ bullpen to get, the muchbetter possibilities they have to phase a return in this ALCS.

Ben Verlander is an MLB Analyst for FOX Sports and the host of the “Flippin’ Bats” podcast. Born and raised in Richmond, Virginia, Verlander was an All-American at Old Dominion University before he signedupwith his sibling, Justin, in Detroit as a 14th-round choice of the Tigers in2013 He invested 5 years in the Tigers company. Follow him on Twitter @BenVerlander.