Over the past few seasons, any series between the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros has been worth watching. Both franchises had some down times in the past decade, but have found ways to win World Series championships.
Entering Monday night's opener of a three-game series between the Rangers and Astros at Daikin Park in Houston, the Rangers find themselves right in the thick of the American League playoff hunt.
Texas has gone 7-3 in its past 10 games, helping the Rangers make up ground. They are three games out of first place in the AL West and two games out of an AL Wild Card spot.
Sure, the Rangers came up short against the New York Mets on Sunday as New York slugger Pete Alonso hit a game-winning, three-run homer to beat Texas 5-2.
Texas knew that going on the road into a tough environment at Citi Field would call on them to put things together.
Look, the Rangers have been dealt a tough hand with injuries hampering them over the past couple of weeks. The Rangers did get Adolis García back in the starting lineup on Sunday, a great sign that he's able to play regularly.
Against the Astros, Texas knows that slugger Yordan Alvarez is back, too. They'll need to neutralize his offensive prowess for any chance to win a game or even the series.
The Rangers also need quality starting pitching for this series. If any of their starters can deliver some shutdown innings, then it'll be fantastic.
Rangers manager Bruce Bochy has been in these postseason push-type of stretches before. He won a World Series in Arlington; he also won a couple out in San Francisco. Bochy really has a solid knack for being able to put the right players in the lineup at the right time.
Can the Rangers sink the Astros' playoff hopes? Of course. Houston has been floundering over the past few weeks, ultimately losing their first-place spot in the AL West to the red-hot Seattle Mariners. Cal Raleigh hit his 54th homer on Sunday and has been the big sparkplug that the Mariners needed to soar into the top spot.
So, the Rangers and Astros know that this series starting on Monday night has a heavyweight boxing match-type feel to it. Let's get ready to rumble.