MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Carlos Correa hit a two-out, tiebreaking house run within the seventh inning for the Houston Astros, who produced one other stifling pitching efficiency and swept Minnesota with a 3-1 victory Wednesday that despatched the Twins to a report 18th straight postseason loss.

9 months after Houston’s rules-breaking, sign-stealing system was revealed, the Astros superior to the Division Collection in Los Angeles. Because the sixth seed, they will face the Oakland Athletics or Chicago White Sox in a best-of-five matchup beginning Monday at Dodger Stadium.

The Twins are 0-18 within the playoffs since successful Recreation 1 of their Division Collection on the New York Yankees on Oct. 5, 2004, a complete of seven rounds misplaced. Since that date, the Astros are 43-35 in postseason play, successful 10 of 15 rounds with three journeys to the World Collection.

Kyle Tucker hit two RBI singles for the Astros and made a key throw from left area for the inning-ending out within the fifth.

Rookie Cristian Javier labored three hitless innings in reduction for the victory in his postseason debut and Ryan Pressly pitched an ideal ninth in opposition to his former staff, giving the Houston bullpen a complete of 9 2/Three scoreless innings on this wild card sequence with three hits allowed.

No person on this Twins staff has had a hand in additional than six of the playoffs losses, however for the second straight yr one among baseball’s most potent lineups limped via a quick postseason cameo. In a three-game Diviion Collection sweep by the Yankees final yr, the Twins totaled seven runs and 22 hits. In opposition to the Astros, they mustered solely two runs and 7 hits.

Nelson Cruz gave the Twins an RBI double for a second straight sport, this time within the fourth inning in opposition to starter Jose Urquidy. Luis Arraez aggressively tried to attain from first base, however Correa took the throw from Tucker and fired house to beat Arraez to the plate to protect the tie.

Then within the seventh in opposition to shedding pitcher Cody Stashak, Correa drove a 1-Zero slider into the tarp-covered seats above right-center area for his 12th house run in 52 playoff video games.

After successful 101, 103 and 107 video games within the final three common seasons, successful the 2017 World Collection and shedding the championship in seven video games to the Washington Nationals final yr, the Astros stumbled via the 2020 season at 29-31 underneath new supervisor Dusty Baker and common supervisor James Click on with a slew of accidents after the COVID-19 pandemic reduce the schedule to 60 video games.

They’d the third-worst street report within the main leagues, too, however none of that mattered this week in opposition to the third-seeded Twins, who had been out of kinds of their two greatest video games of the yr.

José Berríos was one of many few who had been locked in with 5 robust innings, with simply two hits allowed. His two walks had been pricey, although, issued proper earlier than Tucker’s single within the fourth.

KIRILLOFF FOR BUXTON

Already lacking third baseman Josh Donaldson, the Twins held one other one among their most precious gamers out: middle fielder Byron Buxton. Supervisor Rocco Baldelli declined to substantiate whether or not Buxton was experiencing a recurrence of concussion signs that saved him out of the final two common season video games. Buxton was picked off first base after pinch working for Cruz within the eighth.

Max Kepler moved to middle, and Alex Kirilloff — the 2016 first-round draft decide — performed proper area to develop into the primary Twins participant in historical past to make his main league debut in a postseason sport. Kirilloff singled within the fourth, one at-bat too late. With the bases loaded within the first, he flied out to finish the inning.

UP NEXT

The Astros, who’ve reached the AL championship sequence in every of the final three years, will play Monday in opposition to both the A’s or the White Sox. RHP Lance McCullers Jr. is the one member of their common season rotation who didn’t pitch in Minnesota.

The Twins enter the offseason with 10 gamers set to develop into free brokers, together with the 40-year-old Cruz who led the staff in house runs and batting common (amongst gamers with a qualifying quantity of at-bats) for a second straight season. Their 2021 opener is scheduled for April 1 at Milwaukee.

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Extra AP MLB protection: https://apnews.com/MLB