Major League Baseball

Rays Eliminate Astros, Head To World Series

Updated Oct. 18, 2020 12:04 a.m. ET

It ended up being more stressful than expected, but the Tampa Bay Rays have finally finished off their ALCS matchup with the Houston Astros.

The Rays defeated the Astros 4-2 in Game 7 to advance to the World Series for the first time in 12 years and just the second time in franchise history.

Here are 3 takeaways from this roller-coaster ALCS matchup.

1. Randy Arozarena is a star

The Rays jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning that they didn't look back from in Game 7.

And to nobody's surprise, it was due to the bat of Randy Arozarena.

Arozearena's two-run shot was just his latest display of dominance at the plate this postseason, marking his seventh home run in the playoffs.

For the ALCS, Arozarena batted .321 with three home runs and six RBIs, being the catalyst of the Tampa Bay offense all series long.

2. Morton keeps the Astros salty

Charlie Morton was as close to perfect as a starting pitcher can be in the ALCS without actually pitching a perfect game, as the Astros found out for the second time this series just how hard it is to get a run off of the Rays starter.

In two starts against the Astros, Morton pitched 10 2/3 innings while striking out 11 batters and not allowing a single run.

This performance also put Morton in the same breath as Hall of Fame pitcher John Smoltz when it comes to dominance in elimination games.

Speaking of making history, the Rays became the first team ever to take a 3-0 lead, have to play a Game 7, and still pull out a series win, averting the kind of disaster the New York Yankees faced when they let the Boston Red Sox come back from a 3-0 deficit in the 2004 ALCS.

3. Astros lineup goes quiet

After a huge Game 6 from the top of their lineup, the Astros could not get it going at the plate in Game 7, outside of Carlos Correa's two-RBI single in the top of the eighth inning.

Lead-off hitter George Springer was hitless on the night, while the bottom of the lineup of Yuli Gurriel, Josh Reddick, and Martin Maldonado went a combined 0-for-7.

The Astros will spend this offseason wishing they could have Game 7 back to have a chance to provide more offense in the win or go home macthup.

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