On unfamiliar ground, Astros, like Angels, to finish season out of playoffs

When the Houston Astros take the field on Sunday afternoon against the host Los Angeles Angels, it will mark the first time the visitors will have played a game while eliminated from postseason contention since 2016.

With the Cleveland Guardians and Detroit Tigers clinching their respective spots in the American League postseason picture on Saturday, the Astros' stretch of consecutive playoff appearances came to an end.

Houston (86-75) was 20 games above .500 and held a seven-game lead over the Seattle Mariners in the AL West on July 6. Seattle flew past Houston with a furious finish to the year, leaving the Astros with nothing but disappointment entering the season finale on Sunday in Anaheim, Calif.

"I want to apologize to the fans in Houston for falling short," Houston shortstop Carlos Correa said. "It's not what they're accustomed to. They're used to watching playoff baseball and they look forward to that every single year."

The Astros dropped six of seven before beating the Angels 6-1 on Saturday in a game that ended with a somber speech by manager Joe Espada.

"That's the meeting, that's the conversation you don't want to have with your team," Espada said. "This is my eighth season and it's never happened, but it happened today. ... Our season is over, but I told the team that we're going into this offseason with a chip on our shoulder and hungry to get back and climb to the top."

Former ace right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. (2-5, 6.71 ERA) will start Game 162 for Houston. McCullers has struggled in his first season in the majors since 2022, last starting on Aug. 22, when he allowed three runs in four innings in a no-decision against the Baltimore Orioles. The Astros won 10-7.

McCullers' last three appearances were in relief prior to a stay on the 15-day injured list with right hand soreness. In 21 career appearances (20 starts) against the Angels, McCullers is 7-5 with a 3.09 ERA, 116 strikeouts and 50 walks in 116 1/3 innings pitched.

The Angels (72-89) also will wrap up a disappointing campaign on Sunday, the 11th straight without a postseason appearance. Los Angeles began the year with wins in seven of its first 10 games but last held a winning record on April 20 as futility continues for the franchise.

Hoping to help the team end the season on a positive note, 24-year-old left-hander Sam Aldegheri (0-1, 8.00) makes his fourth appearance and second start of the year on Sunday for Los Angeles.

After an outing out of the bullpen against the Texas Rangers on July 8 when he allowed five runs in two innings, a trip to the minors helped him regain focus. Following 10 minor league starts in which he posted a 2.52 ERA, Aldegheri was recalled on Sept. 18.

"After the Texas game, I knew something was wrong," Aldegheri told The Orange County Register. "I went down and was like ‘OK, now we've got to switch the page and change something, because that's not who I am.' "

Aldegheri returned to the big leagues on Tuesday, allowing three runs across 4 2/3 innings in an 8-4 home loss to the Kansas City Royals.

--Field Level Media