Astros gaining ground for AL supremacy with five games left in season

The next five games will play a major role in the Astros postseason plans.

First, the obvious needs to be stated. The Astros walloped the Rangers to the score of 14-3. Home field advantage through the ALDS was secured. And the Astros trimmed a game off the Indians lead for AL supremacy thanks to Cleveland’s loss on Tuesday.

Yes, Houston only trails Cleveland by one game heading into the final five games. This is gonna to be fun to watch.

Back to the Astros win against the Rangers for a moment.

The final score was 14-3. Dallas Keuchel pitches a game that we all want to see from him in the postseason. Actually, multiple starts like that would be great, Dallas. No pressure, though.

However, the lineup stole the show on Tuesday night. First, Cameron Maybin had an almost inside-the-park home run and a regular home run.

Well, technically the inside-the-park home run was treated as a triple with an error charged to Carlos Gomez. This allowed  Maybin to score. But I still view it as a home run. Sorry, I can’t be helped.

You also had big games from Alex Bregman. George Springer, Evan Gattis, Carlos Correa and Brian McCann. Multiple hits. Multiple runs. You get the picture.

And Marwin Gonzalez made history on Tuesday.

Good pitching plus fantastic hitting usually leads to wins. It’s a proven formula in baseball. Some teams tend to one extreme or another, but usually you need both to be successful.

Five games now remain in the 2017 season. And the Astros are about to make that one game shorter as they go for the road sweep in Arlington today.

While a road sweep against your current arch-rival would be nice and all, I would rather take a win to see if the Astros can tie the Indians in the standings. Home field advantage through the ALCS is on the line.

Next: Astros: Lance McCullers' arm could play well in bullpen in October

Of course, this may not matter if Houston fails to advance past the Division Series. But it would be nice to ensure a favorable home-road split in future rounds.

**Statistics and information courtesy of MLB.com**