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NEW YORK — The Houston Astros freight train will roll into the World Series.

Houston swept the New York Yankees on Sunday night, winning Game 4 by a 6-5 score in a battle that went back and forth as New York put up a fight to try to extend their season another night.

So far this postseason, the Astros have not lost, winning all three games against the Seattle Mariners in the ALDS and all four games against the Yankees in the ALCS. This is the fourth time Houston has made the World Series since 2017.

Astros rookie shortstop Jeremy Pena was named ALCS MVP after hitting .353 with two home runs and four RBIs in the series. He led all hitters with a 1.177 OPS.

The Yankees started off the evening’s scoring in the bottom of the first when designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton singled on a sharp line drive to Astros right fielder Kyle Tucker, scoring Yankees center fielder Harrison Bader. Yankees second baseman Gleyber Torres followed up with a bloop single to right field that fell between Tucker and Astros center fielder Chas McCormick, allowing Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo to score a second run.

New York continued to add on to their total in the second, when Rizzo doubled on a ball down the left-field line, scoring shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa and extending the Yankees lead to 3-0.

Yankees starter Nestor Cortes cruised through the game’s first two innings, striking out two and facing just eight batters while allowing no runs. But as Cortes started the third inning, warning signs started to flash. New York’s crafty lefty started the evening with a fastball sitting between 91 and 92 mph, but as Cortes started the third, his velocity dipped to 87-88 mph.

And then the Astros came storming back. Cortes walked Martin Maldonado to start the inning, which prompted a visit to the mound from Yankees manager Aaron Boone and the team trainer. Cortes stayed in the game, but the results did not fare better. Astros second baseman Jose Altuve followed up with a walk before Cortes allowed a home run to shortstop Pena on a hanging 82.1 mph slider, allowing the Astros to tie the score, 3-3.

The home run was the nail in the coffin for Cortes on Sunday. Boone and the Yankees trainer promptly popped out of the dugout and took Cortes out of the game due to injury, later announced by the team as a left groin strain.

Yankees reliever Wandy Peralta entered the game, but struggled to keep the Astros in check. Houston left fielder Yordan Alvarez hit a line drive double to right and after an Alex Bregman flyout, Tucker followed up with an infield line drive single that hit Peralta’s hand.

That set the stage for Astros first baseman Yuli Gurriel, who hit a single to right that scored Alvarez, giving Houston a 4-3 lead.

The Yankees struck back in the fourth inning. Bader kicked things off with a one-out, ground ball single into center field and after an Aaron Judge flyout, first baseman Anthony Rizzo notched a ground ball single to center field, scoring Bader and tying up the game, 4-4.

New York then took the lead in the sixth when Bader hit a homer over the left field fence on a 94.1 mph slider from Houston reliever Hector Neris.

But the Yankees lead proved to be short-lived.

A half inning later in the seventh, Altuve started things off with an infield single off of Yankees reliever Jonathan Loaisiga. New York then made a crucial unforced error. Pena hit a ground ball to Torres to set up a potential double play, but the Yankees second baseman shoveled the ball past Kiner-Falefa into left field, allowing the Astros shortstop to reach base.

Instead of two outs with nobody on, Houston found itself with two runners on with no outs and Alvarez took advantage, knocking an RBI single into right field scoring Altuve to tie the game.

The Yankees replaced Loaisiga with reliever Clay Holmes, who could not stop the bleeding, allowing Bregman to knock in the go-ahead run with an RBI single, scoring Pena and giving the Astros a 6-5 lead, the game’s final tally.

Houston will now host the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 1 of the World Series on Friday at Minute Maid Park. They opened at -180 to win the Fall Classic at Caesars Sportsbook.

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Sale, Crochet named comeback players of year

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Sale, Crochet named comeback players of year

LAS VEGAS — Left-handers Chris Sale of the Atlanta Braves and Garrett Crochet of the Chicago White Sox won Major League Baseball’s Comeback Player of the Year awards on Thursday.

Cleveland right-hander Emmanuel Clase won his second AL Reliever of the Year award and St. Louis righty Ryan Helsley won the NL honor.

Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani joined David Ortiz as the only players to win four straight Outstanding Designated Hitter awards. Ohtani and the New York YankeesAaron Judge won Hank Aaron Awards as the outstanding offensive performers in their leagues.

Major League Baseball made the announcements at its All-MLB Awards Show.

Sale, 35, was 18-3 with a 2.38 ERA and 225 strikeouts in 177⅔ innings for the NL’s first pitching triple crown since the Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw in 2011. He earned his eighth All-Star selection and first since 2018.

Sale helped Boston to the 2018 World Series title but made just 56 starts from 2020-23, going 17-18 with a 4.86 ERA, 400 strikeouts and 79 walks over 298⅓ innings. He was acquired by Boston from the White Sox in December 2016 and made nine trips to the injured list with the Red Sox, mostly with shoulder and elbow ailments. He had Tommy John surgery on March 30, 2020, and returned to a big league mound on Aug. 14, 2021.

Sale fractured a rib while pitching in batting practice in February 2022 during the management lockout. On July 17, in his second start back, he broke his left pinkie finger when he was hit by a line drive off the bat of the Yankees’ Aaron Hicks. Sale broke his right wrist while riding a bicycle en route to lunch on Aug. 6, ending his season.

Crochet, 25, was 6-12 with a 3.58 ERA over 32 starts for a White Sox team that set a post-1900 record of 121 losses, becoming a first-time All-Star. He struck out 209 and walked 33 in 146 innings.

He had Tommy John surgery on April 5, 2022, and returned to the major leagues on May 18, 2023. Crochet had a 3.55 ERA in 13 relief appearances in 2023, and then joined the rotation this year.

Sale and Crochet were chosen in voting by MLB.com beat writers.

Clase and Helsley were unanimous picks by a panel that included Hall of Famers Trevor Hoffman, Mariano Rivera, Dennis Eckersley and Rollie Fingers, along with John Franco and Billy Wagner. The AL award is named after Rivera and the NL honor after Hoffman.

A three-time All-Star, Clase was 4-2 with a 0.61 ERA, 66 strikeouts and 10 walks in 74⅓ innings, holding batters to a .154 average. The 26-year-old converted 47 of 50 save chances, including his last 47.

Voting was based on the regular season. Clase was 0-2 with a 9.00 ERA in the playoffs, allowing three home runs, one more than his regular-season total.

Helsley, a two-time All-Star, was 7-4 with a 2.04 ERA and 49 saves in 53 chances. He struck out 79 and walked 23 in 66⅓ innings.

Ohtani became the first player with 50 or more homers and 50 or more stolen bases in a season. A two-way star limited to hitting following elbow surgery, Ohtani batted .310 and led the NL with 54 homers and 130 RBIs while stealing 59 bases.

Ortiz won the DH award five years in a row from 2003-07.

The DH award, named after Edgar Martinez, is picked in voting by team beat writers, broadcasters and public relations departments. MLB.com writers determined the finalists for the Aaron awards, and a fan vote was combined with picks from a panel of Hall of Famers and former winners to determine the selections.

Judge led the major leagues with 58 homers and 144 RBIs while hitting .322.

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QB Castellanos exits after losing BC starting job

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QB Castellanos exits after losing BC starting job

Boston College quarterback Thomas Castellanos, who lost his starting job earlier this week, will not be returning to the team, he announced Thursday night.

Castellanos, who started 12 games last season and retained the top job under new coach Bill O’Brien, wrote on X that “unfortunately, all good things come to an end, even though it’s sooner than I would like.” He did not mention the transfer portal in his departing message and has not officially entered it. The junior from Waycross, Georgia, started his career at UCF and appeared in five games in 2022.

O’Brien said Tuesday that Grayson James, who replaced Castellanos in last week’s win against Syracuse, will start Saturday when Boston College visits No. 14 SMU. Castellanos “wasn’t real thrilled” with the decision, O’Brien said, adding that the quarterback decided to step away from the team for several days.

Castellanos had 2,248 passing yards and 1,113 rushing yards last season under coach Jeff Hafley, passing for 15 touchdowns and adding 13 on the ground. He had 18 touchdown passes and only five interceptions this season, but his accuracy dipped in recent weeks, and he completed only 2 of 7 passes against Syracuse before being replaced.

In his statement, Castellanos thanked both coaching staffs he played for at Boston College and wrote that he had “some of the best experiences of my life in the Eagles Nest and I will truly cherish these memories forever.”

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Gators’ Lagway ‘ready to play,’ will start vs. LSU

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Gators' Lagway 'ready to play,' will start vs. LSU

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida quarterback DJ Lagway is “ready to play,” coach Billy Napier said Thursday on his weekly radio show.

Napier removed Lagway from the team’s injury report and penciled him in to start against No. 21 LSU in the Swamp on Saturday.

Lagway practiced every day this week while progressing from a strained left hamstring. The highly touted freshman was carted off the field against Georgia on Nov. 2. Tests revealed a “less significant” injury than initially feared, and now he’s back in time to face the Tigers.

The Gators (4-5, 2-4 Southeastern Conference) need him. They have to win two of their final three regular-season games to become bowl eligible.

LSU (6-3, 3-2) has struggled mightily against dual-threat QBs, including Alabama’s Jalen Milroe, who ran for 185 yards and four touchdowns last week.

Lagway returns after walk-on and Yale transfer Aidan Warner started in his place against Texas. Warner threw two interceptions and was 12-of-25 passing for 132 yards in a 49-17 loss.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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