Astros strike first behind gritty Rocket
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Wearing a dress shirt and black pinstripe slacks instead of his Astros uniform, Roger Clemens encountered some resistance as he entered the Turner Field interview room Wednesday.
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Jeff Kent's three-run homer in the  ninth inning gave Houston a 3-0 win over the St Louis Cardinals  Monday to move the Astros within one game of reaching the World  Series for the first time in their 43-year history.
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The streaking Houston Astros edged the   Philadelphia Phillies 5-4 on Monday to close within striking   distance of NL Central leaders St Louis.
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Carlos Beltran hit a two-run homer and Brandon Backe pitched six solid innings in his postseason debut as the Houston Astros got their 19th straight home win, 8-5 over Atlanta yesterday for a 2-1 lead in their NL Divisional Playoffs series.
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Roger Clemens won for the first time in almost a month &#151; the 323rd victory of his career &#151; and Carlos Beltran hit a three-run homer to lead the Houston Astros over the Philadelphia Phillies 8-4 Monday night.
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Roger Clemens and the powerful Houston lineup made sure the Astros got off to a good start, a 9-3 victory, in their quest to finally win a playoff series.
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ATLANTA - Jeff Bagwell and Raul Chavez homered early for the Houston Astros, but the Atlanta Braves rallied to a 2-2 tie heading into the ninth inning Thursday, as Houston sought its first victorious playoff series.    Houston took a 1-0 series lead into Game 2 against Atlanta at Turner Field...
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Craig Biggio homered and Brandon Backe pitched seven strong innings to lead the Houston Astros to a 3-1 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday night.
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A couple of new Killer Bs have the Houston Astros one win away from ending 43 seasons of playoff failure. Carlos Beltran hit a two-run homer and Brandon Backe pitched six solid innings in his
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Brandon Backe pitched seven innings  and clubbed a two-run homer, the first of his major league  career, to earn the Houston Astros an 11-5 triumph over the  Cincinnati Reds in the National League Monday.
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Houston starter Roy Oswalt gave up 12 hits. Closer Brad Lidge couldn't finish the ninth inning. The Astros left 15 runners on base. And Houston still found a way to win a game it hopes will provide an emotional lift as it tries to defend its NL pennant.
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ATLANTA - Roger Clemens and the powerful Houston lineup made sure the Astros got off to a good start in their quest to finally win a playoff series. While Clemens continually pitched out of trouble, Brad Ausmus, Lance Berkman, Carlos Beltran and Jason Lane homered for the Astros to lead a 9-3 rout of the Atlanta Braves in Game 1 of their NL division series Wednesday...
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The Houston Astros not only tied the National League Championship Series with a 6-5 triumph yesterday over the St. Louis Cardinals.
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ST. LOUIS - Carlos Beltran hit a solo home run to give the Houston Astros a 1-0 lead over the St...
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Clemens, who couldn&#39;t pitch the season finale for Houston because of a stomach virus, pitched seven strong innings to help the Houston Astros to a 9-3 win over Atlanta in the first game of their National League Division Series.
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ATLANTA - The Houston Astros zeroed in on their first playoff series victory Monday night, surging to a 9-3 lead over the Atlanta Braves after seven innings of their NL Division Series and moving to the brink of the NLCS.    Jeff Kent's two-out RBI single, which followed Jeff Bagwell's high, arcing two-run home run to left, capped a five-run seventh for the Astros, who have lost all seven postseason series they've played...
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Andy Pettitte pitches the surging Houston Astros to their seventh straight victory, 7-4 over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday night.