Astros fans don't know how to feel about Blue Jays' wild ALCS comeback

It is incredibly easy for Houston Astros fans to tune out of baseball right now. The Astros' second-half slump cost them a playoff spot, and the allure of watching multiple hated rivals getting to play for a chance at a ring isn't particularly high. However, Game 7 of the ALCS this year had a decidedly Astros flavor to it, and that is likely going to fester for a while.

Ultimately, the Blue Jays overcame a 3-1 deficit to take the game and the series from the Seattle Mariners, which punched their ticket to the World Series. For Astros fans, exactly how things have transpired is decidedly bittersweet and highlights very much how easy it is to have regrets in this game.

Blue Jays' ALCS triumph is a very mixed bag for Astros fans

So the good news is that the Mariners are very sad at the moment. Yes, Seattle's playoff run seemed to capture the national media's attention as some sort of Cinderella story, but it was particularly painful for Houston fans to see the team that ran them down at the end of the 2025 season doing so well. Astros faithful may not be super dialed in to the rest of the postseason, but seeing the division rival Mariners lose in soul-crushing fashion probably got a little fist pump.

However, that it was George Springer, whose exit from the Astros is still painful for some fans, that was the one who delivered the decisive three-run homer was a reminder of what might have been had the Astros kept Springer around. Perhaps he would have stayed healthier and helped Houston stave off some of their other playoff eliminations over the last few years. We sadly will never know.

Even at the executive level, the Astros' past decisions loom large. Former general manager James Click was run out of town by owner Jim Crane, and now, Click is not only a leading GM candidate for Colorado, but his current team is about to play for a World Series title. Dana Brown has done well as his replacement, but it is hard to wonder how different things would be right now if Click and Crane could have forged a long-term partnership.

In short, it is hard for Astros fans to know how to feel right now in the wake of one of the more exciting Game 7s in recent memory. However, with the Dodgers looming in the Fall Classic, we can all agree that rooting against LA, given the Astros' history with them, is absolutely the play, even if it is bittersweet.