. Gonzalez later hit his 23rd homer, a solo shot in the sixth.Collin McHugh (4-2) struck out six while throwing 112 pitches in five innings. The right-hander is 15-0 with a 2.94 ERA in 19 starts in September or October during his four seasons with the Astros.McHugh also had another dustup with former Astros teammate Carlos Gomez, who apparently took exception to being quick-pitched after he changed bats following an inside pitch immediately after Joey Gallo's 39th home run. Gomez walked toward the mound, and the benches and bullpens cleared, though no punches were thrown.Texas (76-80), division champs the past two years, had an early 2-0 lead before losing its fourth straight game. The Rangers dropped six games behind idle Minnesota for the second American League wild card with six to play.The Astros (96-60) are within two games of AL Central champion Cleveland for the best record in the league, though the Indians own the tiebreaker for home-field advantage throughout the playoffs if they finish with the same record.Only one of the eight runs in the Astros' fourth was earned. Houston had four hits - two each by Gonzalez and Evan Gattis, who had a two-run double - and was helped by two walks, a hit batter and two errors.Cashner's ERA actually dropped - from 3.44 to 3.42 - after becoming the first Rangers pitcher since knuckleballer Charlie Hough in 1987 to allow seven unearned runs.McHugh was on the disabled list in early May when he had a heated exchange of words with Gomez, who had to be restrained from Houston starter Lance McCullers Jr. after a pitch thrown behind Mike Napoli's head.When Gomez was still with the Astros last season, McHugh responded on the mound with an obscenity after Gomez lost a fly ball while playing center field and it went over his head.TRAINER'S ROOMAstros: OF Josh Reddick, who has been dealing with a sore back, was out of the lineup for the second time in three games. Houston manager A. J. Hinch said Reddick is fine but probably won't play Tuesday.Rangers: Manager Jeff Banister rejoined the team after missing the previous two games to be with his mother in the Houston area after she experienced some complications following surgery. ''She made it evident that it was necessary for me to come back here,'' Banister said.UP NEXTDallas Keuchel and Cole Hamels, left-handed aces who have both missed more than 50 games this season, pitch the middle game of the series. Keuchel (13-5) is making his 12th start since missing 53 games during two DL stints (pinched nerve in back, neck discomfort). Hamels (11-4) missed 51 games because of a right oblique strain.---More baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball)
Rangers need to sweep Astros to have postseason chance 1h ago• 3 min read ARLINGTON, Texas -- The Texas Rangers saw their faint playoff hopes get all but extinguished over the weekend, leaving the start of a homestand against the in-state rival Houston Astros devoid of much drama or intrigue.With the season on the line, Texas was swept by the A's in Oakland. An 8-1 loss on Sunday leaves the Rangers 5 1/2 games behind the Minnesota Twins for the second wild-card spot with seven games to play."We are making it tougher on ourselves," Texas third baseman/designated hitter Adrian Beltre said. "This was a bad weekend for us. We expected to win this series, and it didn't turn out that way. It's not set in stone yet, but we have to go back home and win as many games as we can." Texas (76-79) arrived in Oakland still in striking distance of the Twins, 2 1/2 games back. The three losses to the last-place A's were a crushing blow for a Rangers squad that hasn't been able to get out of its own way for most of the season."It has been tough the last three games," Texas catcher Robinson Chirinos said. "We came in here with a really good chance for the last wild-card spot. We still have a chance, but it depends on how Minnesota plays in their last games. We have to go home and fight. The fight is not over." Texas likely needs to sweep its final two series at home to have any postseason shot, and that probably won't be enough. The first series is against the Astros, who have long since clinched their first American League West title and are tuning up for the playoffs.The Rangers send Andrew Cashner to the hill for the Monday night series opener at Globe Life Park. The 31-year-old right-hander is 10-10 with a 3.44 ERA, and he has been one of the club's more consistent starters down the stretch.Cashner is 7-3 with a 3.05 ERA since the start of July. He has faced the Astros in each of the first five series between the clubs this year, going 1-4 with a 4.06 ERA.Cashner will be the first Rangers starter to face a single opponent six times in a season since Yu Darvish against the Los Angeles Angels in 2012.The Astros are cruising into the playoffs after lapping the field in the AL West. Houston entered Sunday with a 19-game division lead, which was a season high and a franchise record. The Astros' largest lead to end a season was 12 1/2 games, set over the Chicago Cubs while winning the NL Central in 1998.The Astros (95-60) must win out to match the best record in franchise history, 102-60, set in 1998. The '99 club has the second-most wins at 97.Catching the Cleveland Indians (98-58) for the best record in the AL remains the priority. More important is setting up the rotation for the AL Division Series, and manager A. J. Hinch has yet to tip his hand."We're going to keep playing and try to pile up as many wins as we can," he said. "Obviously, we're going to line things up for the postseason as soon as we need to, but we want our guys to have the mentality to finish strong and finish these games." The Astros open the Texas series with Collin McHugh. The righty's role for the playoffs is uncertain, with moving into the bullpen a possibility. McHugh (3-2, 3.44 ERA) didn't allow a run or get a decision in his only other outing against the Rangers this season.He is coming off a 3-1 win over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday, when he allowed one run on five hits in five innings.
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