The 2015 American League Wild Card Game was a

play-in game A play-in gameTh ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

's (MLB) 2015 postseason played between the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

's (AL) two wild card teams, the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one of ...

and the Houston Astros. It was held at

Yankee Stadium Yankee Stadium is a baseball stadium located in the Bronx, New York City. It is the home field of the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball, and New York City FC of Major League Soccer. Opened in April 2009, the stadium replaced the orig ...

on October 6, 2015. The Astros defeated the Yankees, 3–0. It was the Astros' first playoff win since Game 6 of the

2005 NLCS The 2005 National League Championship Series (NLCS), the second round of the 2005 National League playoffs, matched the Central Division champion and defending league champion 2005 St. Louis Cardinals season, St. Louis Cardinals against the wild ...

and their first victory in a winner-take-all postseason game. With the Yankees eliminated, all four remaining teams in the 2015 ALDS were expansion teams.

Background

The Yankees clinched a wild card berth on October 1, while the Astros clinched a wild card berth on October 4, the final day of the regular season. The Yankees hosted the game, as they finished the regular season with a better

win–loss record In sports, a winning percentage is the fraction of games or matches a team or individual has won. The statistic is commonly used in standings or rankings to compare teams or individuals. It is defined as wins divided by the total number of matc ...

. This was the Astros' first postseason appearance as an AL team, and first overall since 2005, while the Yankees appeared in the postseason for the first time since

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

. As such, this was the first postseason meeting between the Astros and the Yankees.

Game results

Line score

Houston's

Dallas Keuchel Dallas Keuchel (, ; born January 1, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is currently a free agent. He has previously played in MLB for the Houston Astros, Atlanta Braves, Chicago White Sox, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Texas Ran ...

struck out seven batters and allowed only three hits in six innings of work. The Astros' bullpen then retired nine of ten Yankee batters for the victory. The Astros were paced offensively by leadoff home runs by Colby Rasmus in the second inning and

Carlos Gómez Carlos Argelis Gómez Peña, nicknamed Go-Go, (born December 4, 1985) is a Dominican former professional baseball outfielder. He played for the New York Mets, Minnesota Twins, Milwaukee Brewers, Houston Astros, Texas Rangers and Tampa Bay R ...

in the fourth, as New York starter

Masahiro Tanaka is a Japanese professional baseball player for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). From 2007 through 2013, he played for the Eagles in NPB. Tanaka was posted by the Eagles after the 2013 season to be s ...

struggled to find command of his pitches. Tanaka lasted five innings, striking out three. Houston's

José Altuve José Carlos Altuve (; born May 6, 1990) is a Venezuelan professional baseball second baseman for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). The Astros signed Altuve as an amateur free agent in 2007, and he made his major league debut ...

scored Jonathan Villar from second base in the seventh inning against Yankee reliever

Dellin Betances Dellin Betances (; born March 23, 1988) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees and New York Mets from 2011 to 2021. Betances was named an MLB All-Star from 2014 to 2 ...

, the final run of the game.

References

External links

*
Box Score
{{New York Yankees

American League Wild Card Game The Wild Card Series (formerly known as Wild Card Game from 2012 to 2019 and in 2021) are games that serve as the opening round of the Major League Baseball (MLB) postseason. A single wild card game was first instituted in 2012; best-of-three ...

Major League Baseball Wild Card Game Houston Astros postseason New York Yankees postseason

2010s in the Bronx Yankee Stadium