Houston Astros rebound from 11 games under .500 and win AL West despite finishing 81-81

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The Houston Astros dropped 11 games under .500. They got rid of their general manager in August. They failed to finish with a winning record.

And they won the AL West for the fifth time in six years.

“It’s been a roller coaster of a season, but just to be here and know that the division is back in Houston, that the crown is back, it’s a good feeling,” manager Joe Espada said Sunday after the Astros clinched the title on the final day of the regular season.

Nick Allen had just doubled leading off the eighth inning with Houston leading the Athletics by eight runs when Texas lost 6-4 at Minnesota, assuring the Astros of their ninth postseason trip in 10 years after missing out in 2025.

Houston will host the Chicago White Sox in a best-of-three Wild Card Series starting Tuesday. The Astros finished one game ahead of Texas (80-82) but would have earned the division title even with a defeat Sunday because they held the tiebreaker.

Houston (81-81) had the lowest winning percentage for a team reaching the playoffs in a non-shortened season, breaking the mark set when the 2005 San Diego Padres went 82-80.

“About early May, we were in a tough spot. Any other team would have folded, but these guys chose not to,” Espada said following his team’s 9-0 victory over the A’s. “It’s about character and this team don’t quit, they fight.”

Yordan Alvarez won the AL batting title with an MLB-best .316 average — the lowest ever for the big league leader. He had 42 homers and 106 RBIs.

“I even told the guys in there that even though I hit 40 home runs, I think the batting title was something I always wanted,” Alvarez said.

Star infielder Carlos Correa didn’t play after May 4 because of a torn tendon in his left ankle that needed surgery.

Right-hander Hunter Brown, a 2025 All-Star, didn’t pitch for the Astros between March 3 and June 16 because of a strained right shoulder.

“Every team deals with adversity, and at that time, it was just ours,” Brown said.

Houston shortstop Jeremy Peña, the 2022 World Series MVP, was sidelined between April 11 and May 18 by a strained right hamstring and between June 28 and July 10 by a strained left calf. All-Star closer Josh Hader didn’t pitch until June 3 because of left biceps tendinitis.

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Houston was 20-31 through May 20 but dropped only as much as six games out of first place in a weak division.

The Astros took sole possession of first with an 11-2 win over the Rangers on July 31 and held at least a share of the lead for most of the rest of the season.

“All games in the big leagues are important, and today came down to winning the last one,” Brown said. “We’ve been playing playoff baseball for the last couple of weeks. We’re ready to go.”

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