Jose Altuve hits go-ahead homer in 9th, Astros take 3-2 lead over Rangers in ALCS after benches clear

By Stephen Hawkins

Jose Altuve hit a three-run homer in the ninth inning and the Houston Astros, after getting into another bench-clearing scuffle with the Texas Rangers, rallied for a 5-4 victory in a wild and testy Game 5 of the AL Championship Series on Friday.

After winning all three games at rival Texas, the defending champion Astros head home to Houston needing one win to reach a third consecutive World Series. They lead 3-2 in the best-of-seven playoff going into Game 6 on Sunday night.

Adolis García punctuated his towering three-run homer in the sixth with a slow trot and an empathic spike of his bat after watching the ball clear the wall to give Texas a 4-2 lead.

When the slugger came to bat again with a runner on first in the eighth, Bryan Abreu hit García on the left arm with a pitch. An angry García immediately turned to get in the face of catcher Martín Maldonado — the two also jawed nose-to-nose when García touched home plate after his grand slam in Houston on July 26.

Both benches and bullpens cleared, and once things settled down, García, Abreu and Astros manager Dusty Baker had been ejected.