
Bronx, NY- The Houston Astros left the field at Yankee Stadium in what was now early Monday morning and headed to their victorious clubhouse. For the fourth time since 2017 they are the AL champions and will begin their quest for another World Championship Friday.
The Philadelphia Phillies, sixth and final seed out of the National League, and the Wild Card team, will travel to Houston for the best-of-seven Fall Classic, the World Series that has become routine for these Astros.
So the Astros had reason to celebrate after sweeping the Yankees in the Bronx in the ALCS, as not many teams have accomplished a sweep in a brief postseason series. The Astros have become a team in October and far away from a scandal ridden 2017 World Series championship that will always follow their path.
But the veteran Dusty Baker took over the managerial reins. The Astros cleaned house with some players, retained the perennial All-Star José Altuve, boosted their starting pitching staff and bullpen. They made some necessary free agent acquisitions and built from their minor league system.
“They are headed to another World Series, and the 73-year-old Baker, who has been there before, will seek his first championship as a Major League manager.
“It’s a long road to get here,” Baker said. “There’s a lot that happens in the months to get here from Spring Training. It means that we preserved and we stayed together, and we made the necessary trades when we had to try to strengthen certain parts of our team. These are a very close-knit bunch of guys.”

Image Credit: Bill Menzel/Latino Sports
They sprayed the champagne in the visitor’s clubhouse, four more wins and they raise the championship trophy, the fifth team to start a postseason with at least seven straight wins.
But four more is what they want and with pieces to achieve that goal as the Yankees once again became their October victim. That has become a habit, the Yankees and Astros meeting to become the final one standing in the American League.
The Astros have eliminated the Yankees four times since 2015, with ALCS victories in 2017, ‘19 and now. Last year, Baker and the Astros failed to get that World Series championship losing to the Atlanta Braves in six games.
And this time they may have better pieces as they return home to meet the Phillies.
Jermey Peña, (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic) their 25-year shortstop, not a Number 1 draft pick, has epitomized the international and talent strength of the Astros with an ability to sign players. Once Carlos Correa opted for free agency, Peña became a find and was instrumental in the Astros 6-5 win and four-game sweep over the Yankees in the Bronx.

Image Credit: Bill Menzel/Latino Sports
Peña hit a game-tying 3-run home run off Nestor Cortes in the 3rd inning, his third home run of the postseason which became a crucial moment for the Yankees and beginning of another Astros inevitable return to a World Series.
Peña is beginning to understand, this is Astros baseball. They make contact at the plate, excel at situational hitting, and know how to win ball games. The Astros won 106 regular season ballgames and secured home field advantage in the World Series.
And Peña was in the clubhouse celebrating. There was every reason to pop the bubbly and begin his mission of winning a World Series championship for his team, the Dominican Republic, and the city of Houston.
“It’s surreal,” Peña said. “You dream about this stuff when you’re a kid, and shout-out to my teammates. We show up every single day. We stayed true to ourselves all year. We’re a step away from the ultimate goal.”

Image Credit: Bill Menzel/Latino Sports
The Peña stats in the ALCS: 6-for-17, two home runs, two doubles, .353 at the plate. And that slider he hit off Cortes that went down the left-field line was the talk in a victorious clubhouse.
“I love the way he’s handling everything,” said the veteran Altuve, who is not having one of his better postseasons, 3-for-32, 11 strikeouts, 3 walks, .094 average.
But Peña has looked up to the veteran and many others in the clubhouse, then again, this is how the Houston Astros conduct business as they continue to get younger and more athletic.
Indeed this was a breakout year for Peña, 22 home runs and that 18th inning solo home got the Astros a Game 3 win against the Mariners in the ALDS.

Image Credit: Bill Menzel/Latino Sports
“There was a lot of work that went into this,” said Peña, the MVP of the American League Championship Series. “A lot of blood, sweat, and tears. The team stuck with one another. We rooted for one another. We picked each other up all year and we battled all year.”
And one more battle remains: The Phillies and four more wins for the Astros and Jeremy Peña.
Rich Mancuso is a senior writer at Latinosports.com Twitter@Ring786 Facebook.com Watch “Sports with Rich” live on Tuesday Nights at 8pm EST on The SLG Network/Youtube with Robert Rizzo Available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify under The SLG Network
