Houston Astros eliminated from playoff contention, ending streak of 8 straight appearances

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — The Houston Astros’ streak of eight consecutive playoff appearances ended Saturday night in the second inning of their 6-1 victory over the Los Angeles Angels.

The Astros took the field at Angel Stadium with a glimmer of hope, as the Cleveland Guardians and Texas Rangers were tied going into the ninth inning at Progressive Field.

But with Christian Walker at the plate in the top of the second in Anaheim, Guardians outfielder C.J. Kayfus was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth to give Cleveland a 3-2 win over the Rangers, clinching the final American League playoff berth for the Guardians and eliminating the Astros.

This will be the first time the Astros (86-75) miss the postseason since 2016. They made seven straight trips to the AL Championship Series from 2017-23, winning four pennants and a pair of World Series titles (2017 and 2022) during that stretch.

In fact, Sunday’s season finale against the Angels will be only the fourth game since the start of the 2015 season in which the Astros will be out of playoff contention.

“I want to apologize to the fans in Houston for falling short — it’s not what they’re accustomed to,” Astros infielder Carlos Correa said. “They’re used to watching playoff baseball, and they look forward to that every single year.

“We were not able to accomplish that this year, but we promise our fans in Houston that this offseason is going to be one of a lot of hard work. We’re going to get better, and next year is going to be one to remember.”

Houston began the season without two of its best players from 2024, as third baseman Alex Bregman signed a free-agent deal with the Boston Red Sox and outfielder Kyle Tucker was traded to the Chicago Cubs.

The Astros lost their top slugger, Yordan Alvarez, to injuries for much of the season and several other key players — closer Josh Hader, shortstop Jeremy Peña and third baseman Isaac Paredes among them — to injuries down the stretch.

Houston was still in the hunt for a fifth straight AL West title, tied with Seattle entering a big three-game series against the Mariners on Sept. 19. But the Astros were swept at home by Seattle and lost two more games to the Athletics — they did not hold a lead in any of the five consecutive losses — to fall five games back in the division race.

They had a chance to pull into a three-way tie with the Guardians and Detroit Tigers on Friday night, but failed to hold an early 3-0 lead and lost 4-3 to the Angels to remain a game behind the two AL Central teams.

Cleveland and Detroit both hold tiebreakers over Houston, so the Astros needed to win their final two games and have either the Guardians or Tigers lose their last two to extend their playoff streak. But then Cleveland and Detroit both won on Saturday to punch their tickets to the postseason.

“That’s a meeting, that’s a conversation that you don’t want to have with your team,” Houston manager Joe Espada said of his postgame address to the club. “This is my eighth season, and this has never happened. But it happened today.

“I told this team I’m really proud of them, because we’ve gone through a lot. We have guys who have no business being on the field right now, who are banged-up, but they’re playing through pain, through injuries, because they want it for our city, they want it for their teammates, and that’s the heart of a champion, right?”

Walker, who hit two solo homers Saturday night, believes Houston's absence from the postseason will be an aberration, not the start of a downward spiral for the franchise.

“This stinks. It hurts, for sure. We poured a lot of energy and emotion, and blood, sweat and tears into the season,” Walker said. “I felt like with this team, there’s a lot of special moments that could happen in this room, so it sucks not to be able to show that on the postseason stage.

“There were some unfortunate injuries and things that happened along the way, but that’s part of it. Good teams find a way, and we almost did. We were close but not good enough. But even with the lineup and the roster we have, I think this group can win a World Series, for sure.”

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Houston Astros' Jose Altuve watches from the dugout during the second inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Houston Astros relief pitcher Bryan King sits in the dugout after he was pulled during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels, Friday, Sept. 26, 2025, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jayne Kamin-Oncea)

Houston Astros relief pitcher Bryan King (74) stands on the mound as Los Angeles Angels' Mike Trout rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run during the eighth inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 26, 2025, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jayne Kamin-Oncea)

Houston Astros' Jose Altuve, center, and his teammates watch from the dugout during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

Houston Astros' Mauricio Dubon (14) and Jose Altuve (27) watch from the dugout during the third inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels Saturday, Sept. 27, 2025, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. forces in the Caribbean Sea have seized another sanctioned oil tanker the Trump administration says has ties to Venezuela, part of a broader U.S. effort to take control of the South American country’s oil.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote Thursday on social media, “Motor Tanker Veronica had previously passed through Venezuelan waters, and was operating in defiance of President Trump’s established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean.”

A social media post from U.S. Southern Command on the capture said that Marines and sailors launched from the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford to make the capture while Noem’s post noted that, like in previous raids, a U.S. Coast Guard tactical team conducted the boarding and seizure.

Noem posted a brief video that appeared to show part of the ship’s capture. The black-and-white footage showed helicopters hovering over the deck of a merchant vessel while armed troops dropped down on the deck by rope.

The Veronica is the sixth tanker that has been seized by U.S. forces as part of the effort by President Donald Trump’s administration to control the production, refining and global distribution of Venezuela’s oil products, and the fourth since the U.S. ouster of Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro in a surprise nighttime raid almost two weeks ago.

Noem, in her social media post, said that the raid was carried out with “close coordination with our colleagues” in the military as well as the State and Justice departments.

“Our heroic Coast Guard men and women once again ensured a flawlessly executed operation, in accordance with international law,” Noem added.

As with prior posts, Noem and the military framed the seizure as part of an effort to enforce the law. Noem argued that the multiple captures show that “there is no outrunning or escaping American justice.”

However, other officials in Trump's Republican administration have made clear they see it as a way to generate cash as they seek to rebuild Venezuela’s battered oil industry and restore its economy.

Last week, Trump met with executives from oil companies to discuss his goal of investing $100 billion in Venezuela to repair and upgrade its oil production and distribution. His administration has said it expects to sell at least 30 million to 50 million barrels of sanctioned Venezuelan oil.

This story has been corrected to show the Veronica is the fourth, not the third, tanker seized by U.S. forces since Maduro's capture.

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a press conference, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks at a news conference at Harry Reid International Airport, Nov. 22, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ronda Churchill, File)