Given how crucial a Game 5 tends to be in a best-of-seven series that's currently tied, the tension between the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros in the 2023 ALCS was bound to reach its boiling point. And reach its boiling point, it has; after Rangers outfielder Adolis Garcia was hit by pitch, perhaps as retaliation for his showboating following a go-ahead home run earlier in the game, the benches cleared, leading to a few ejections from both sides.

These sorts of altercations tend to be huge turning points in crucial playoff games; it was only a matter of which team had the greater resolve to get their team over the finish line. In the end, there was only one favorite to come out on top. The Astros, hardened by the playoff experiences they've had over the years, were able to come back from a 4-2 deficit with an impressive three-run top of the ninth inning.

One thing is clear, says Astros catcher Martin Maldonado; the last thing the Rangers want to do is to poke the bear. After all, there may not be a tougher out in the playoffs than the reigning World Series champion.

“The worst thing he did was wake up the Houston Astros,” Maldonado told the FOX Sports MLB postgame crew.

Martin Maldonado might be right; a huge part of the playoff battle is the mental warfare involved between two equally-talented sides. With the margins being razor-thin, the Rangers could ill-afford letting the Astros have any semblance of advantage, which Houston clearly had in the aftermath of the emotional altercation. And now, heading into Game 6 on Sunday, at Minute Maid Park no less, the Rangers may be in danger of seeing all their hard work to this point come undone.

Now in need of just one more win, the Astros' big guns could not have picked a better time to pick up the pace. Jose Altuve, in particular, has been such a godsend for the Astros, hitting the go-ahead three-run shot in the ninth to further back up all the praise he's been receiving from Dusty Baker and Alex Bregman, among others.