Community Picks: Houston 0% vs Seattle 0%

Once they got behind closed doors in the clubhouse, the Houston Astros showered Justin Verlander with champagne. Verlander pitched just well enough to earn his 200th career win and the Astros hit five home runs, beating the Oakland Athletics 9-4 Sunday to retake sole possession of the AL West lead. ''That was one of the tougher wins I had to get this season,'' Verlander said. Continue to Article

August 19, 2018 8:54:pm EST

Yuli Gurriel, Evan Gattis, Martin Maldonado, Alex Bregman, and Marwin Gonzalez all homered, and the Astros salvaged the series finale against the A's with a 9-4 win. Maldonado also came a single shy of hitting for the cycle. The A's belted three home runs of their own, two from Khris Davis and another from Matt Chapman, but that was all the offense they could muster. Continue to Article

August 19, 2018 7:25:pm EST

After trailing the Astros by 12 games exactly two months ago, the A's have pulled even. Oakland beat Houston 7-1 Saturday afternoon to improve to 74-49 and move into a first-place tie atop the AL West. Trevor Cahill was masterful, pitching seven shutout innings, allowing just an infield single and a walk, while striking out seven. Continue to Article

August 18, 2018 6:53:pm EST

Without warning, the AL West has become a race once again: With Seattle’s four-game sweep of the division-leading Astros and Oakland taking two of three from the Angels, the Astros no longer have the stranglehold they once had on the division. As such, we enter Monday’s action with Houston leading the red-hot Athletics by just 2 ½ games in the West, with the Mariners only four games out of first. Continue to Article

August 13, 2018 1:02:pm EST