KANSAS CITY, Mo. — George Springer stopped running and walked off slowly, pushing the final out to the warning track as the Royals pushed by him to crowd the mound and leap on one another. If the ball had carried just a little more, a little differently at so many points this series, the Astros could be four wins away from the World Series.
Instead, their thrilling season is over, Club Astros shuttered until further noticed.
A team that surprised so many and wasn’t supposed to be in the postseason perhaps for years to come finally ran into a buzzsaw even its homer-happy lineup couldn’t address Wednesday night in Game 5 of the American League Division Series, a far different Johnny Cueto from the one they saw here last week, a righty who made one mistake and was backed by a torturous lineup in a 7-2 Royals win.