Say good night to the bad guys: Astros fall short in Game 7

SAN DIEGO (AP) — The Houston Astros spent this odyssey of a season as baseball's biggest villains.

When Aledmys Diaz flied out with a runner on first to end Game 7 of the AL Championship Series, the bad guys finally lost.

Ridiculed, roasted and ripped all year long, the Astros still summoned enough October heart and poise to reach the brink of another World Series. Manager Dusty Baker's club even came agonizingly close to matching the biggest playoff comeback in baseball history in a wild ALCS.

Although they couldn't quite conjure one more incredible postseason feat, this playoff run should be a source of pride for these Astros long after the boos stop.

Although if fans are allowed back in most stadiums in 2021, this tarnished franchise probably won't hear the end of 2020 anytime soon.

Houston fell behind early and never caught up in a 4-2 loss to Tampa Bay in Game 7 on Saturday night, coming up short of an astonishing series comeback after three consecutive victories.

After winning two of the previous three AL pennants and the 2017 World Series championship, the Astros played the entire season under a large, dark cloud created by revelations of the franchise's sign-stealing tactics during 2017 and 2018.

The Astros’ wild year began in January with the firings of manager A.J. Hinch and general manager Jeff Luhnow. But several Astros veterans from those tainted seasons remain on the team, and the players weren’t sanctioned.

They reported to spring training in February only to face widespread condemnation from their fellow major leaguers as the team that every other team loved to hate.

The Astros were relentlessly ripped by their opponents and castigated online from spring training onward. They were soundly booed and serenaded by the banging of trash cans whenever...

source https://www.chron.com/sports/article/Say-good-night-to-the-bad-guys-Astros-fall-short-15656076.php