Carlos Correa, Dallas Keuchel Keep Houston in Playoff Race; Cubs' Jake Arrieta Improves to 22-6

Players of the Day for Friday, October 2, 2015

American League

Carlos Correa

Keuchel: 20-8

Houston remained in the running for the AL West, whipping the Arizona Diamondbacks, 21-5, while the Angels took a game from the first-place Rangers, 2-1, leaving Houston two games behind Texas with two games remaining.

Arrieta: 22-6

Houston starter, Dallas Keuchel, picked up what was probably the easiest win of the season, tossing six innings and allowing two runs on six hits, fanning three. The win made Keuchel the sole 20-game winner in the American League, at 20-8.

Carlos Correa was the hitting star for the Astros, going 3-for-4 with a single, triple, solo home run, four RBI and four runs.

The Astros will look to make it three wins in a row and two straight against Arizona when they take the field Saturday at 8:10 pm EDT. Houston is one game up on the Angles and two games better than Minnesota in the race for the second wild card.

They have a chance to be the home team for the wild card game, but the Yankees (postponed Friday) would have to lose all three of their games in Baltimore this weekend. The Yanks have a double-header in Baltimore on Saturday and close out the season at Camden Yards on Sunday.

National League

Jake Arrieta improved to 22-6, as the Chicago Cubs kept pressure on the Pirates in the wild card race with a 6-1 victory over the Brewers in Milwaukee Friday.

Arrieta worked six innings, allowed two hits and no runs, striking out seven.

Chicago remained two games back of Pittsburgh as the Pirates prevailed over the Reds, 6-4, in 12 innings, extending the Reds' losing streak to 13 games.

Both the Pirates and Cubs have two games left to play, so the Pirates, with a win or a Chicago loss, could wrap up the wild card home field on Saturday.

The Cubs go back to work Saturday night at 7:10 pm EDT when they face the Brewers in game two of their three-game series.