Major League Baseball

MLB playoffs top plays: Rays blank Red Sox, Astros rout White Sox

Updated Oct. 7, 2021 11:38 p.m. ET

If you thought the wild-card matchups were fun, the start of the ALDS was even better on Thursday.

Certainly, the day's action was popcorn-worthy.

First up, the Chicago White Sox traveled to Texas to face the Houston Astros in Game 1 of their ALDS series. The Astros jumped on the White Sox early and cruised to a 6-1 win to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five series.

Then, the AL East champion Tampa Bay Rays blanked the Boston Red Sox 5-0, with Randy Arozarena taking center stage.

Here are the top plays from the MLB playoffs on Thursday.

Rays 5, Red Sox 0 (Tampa Bay leads series 1-0)

How do you even hit this?

Rays starter Shane McClanahan started with absolutely nasty stuff, blowing 100 mph heaters and ridiculous breaking balls past the Red Sox, striking out the side in the first.

There's a reason they finished first

The AL East champs took a 2-0 lead in the first thanks to an RBI double by Arozarena, followed by an infield single.

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Turns out the stadium can hold Nelson Cruz

The Rays extended their lead to 3-0 in the bottom of the third when Nelson Cruz blasted a shot into a catwalk attached to the ceiling. Cruz sprinted to third base on the play, but it was ruled a home run, the 18th postseason homer of his career. We wonder how far it would have gone if the roof weren't there.

Enjoying the ride

Is there anyone who has more fun in the playoffs — or is more effective — than Arozarena? His 107 mph laser beam left the yard in the fifth inning, pushing the Rays' lead to 4-0. And he had some fun celebrating, too.

Arozarena's home run was even better in Spanish.

Sneaky does it!

Arozarena continued to dominate the game in the seventh inning. After walking and advancing to third on a double by rookie Wander Franco, Arozarena stole home to make it 5-0. He was the first player to steal home in a playoff game since 2016.

The Trop trap

The Red Sox threatened to get back in the game in the eighth, when Kevin Kiermaier lost track of a ball in the roof.

But Rafael Devers struck out, and Hunter Renfroe popped out to end the threat.

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Astros 6, White Sox 1 (Houston leads series 1-0)

First things first

Astros starter Lance McCullers Jr. spun a 1-2-3 inning to lead things off, and Lance Lynn followed suit with a three-up, three-down bottom half of the first for the White Sox.

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Gotcha!

The first baserunner of the day, White Sox center fielder Luis Robert, reached after getting plunked in the arm with one out, but his journey on the basepath was short-lived in the top of the second inning.

After Eloy Jiménez flew out to right field for the second out of the inning, Robert attempted to force the issue and steal second base. However, Astros catcher Martin Maldonado was there to deliver a seed and snuff out the attempt.

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All aboard

The 'Stros struck first in the bottom of the second, as Jake Meyers hit a two-out single to right field to drive in Yordan Alvarez.

Jake Meyers' RBI-single gives Astros 1-0 lead over White Sox

Jake Meyers' first career postseason hit is an RBI single to give the Houston Astros a 1-0 lead over the Chicago White Sox early in Game 1 of the ALDS.

Lynn struck out Maldonado to squash any further damage, but the Astros led 1-0 after two innings.

Insurance runs

In the bottom of the third, the Astros added some insurance.

First, Jose Altuve managed to score from third base on an infield grounder, which was followed by Alvarez adding a third run to the scoreboard thanks to a double.

Then, in the fourth inning, the Astros added two more runs thanks to a Michael Brantley single, extending their lead to 5-0.

Air Yordan

It's Alvarez's world — the rest of us are just living in it.

The Astros' slugger added to his big day with a solo home run in the bottom of the fifth inning to give the Astros a 6-0 lead.

The Astros' six runs proved to be more than enough to secure a Game 1 victory at home, as they won 6-1 to strike first in this series.

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