Jose Altuve has been a harbinger of postseason success for the Houston Astros, helping his team win two World Series since 2017 — and he brought them one step closer to another trip to the dance on Friday night.
Altuve smashed a three-run home run in the top of the ninth inning with the Astros trailing 4-2, giving his team the lead and, ultimately, a 5-4 win over the Texas Rangers in Game 5 in front of a stunned crowd at Globe Life Field in Arlington.
Houston manager Dusty Baker continues to be impressed with Altuve's ability to come up with the clutch hit when his team needs it most.
“Number one, he wants to be up there. Number two, he's got a high concentration level, because that’s what it takes in big moments like that. Concentration, desire and relaxation all encompassed into one. Everybody can't do all three of those things,” Baker said afterwards, per The Athletic's Chandler Rome.
“This dude is one of the baddest dudes I've ever seen, and I've seen some greats.”
And his manager wasn't the only one pumping Altuve's tires after the win.
“He never gets too high, never gets too low. I think it's something that makes him so great — if he's not playing well, he doesn’t get down. If he’s playing great, he doesn't get too high,” third baseman Alex Bregman explained. “He stays even-keeled throughout. I think everyone in here strives to be like that. Only the special players are like that.”
“That guy is special. Time after time,” infielder Grae Kessinger echoed. “We were just talking about it, you feel like you knew it was going to happen when he came up. He just has that kind of effect and the way he carries himself, it’s just awesome to see.”
It was Jose Altuve's 26th career postseason home run, second in major league history behind only Manny Ramirez with 29. He single-handedly reversed the Astros course from a 3-2 series hole, to now having an opportunity to close it out and return to the World Series in Game 6 on Sunday.
“We've done it so many times,” one of the most clutch playoff hitters in baseball history calmly stated after the win. “We never give up until the last out.”
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