Backe Homers and Pitches Astros to Win
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Houston Astros pitcher Brandon Backe got his first career homer, a two-run shot, and allowed one run in seven innings to keep the Astros in the thick of the NL wild-card chase with an 11-5 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Monday &#151; their season-high 10th straight victory.
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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 postseason debut to lead the Astros to their 19th straight home win, 8-5 over Atlanta on Saturday for a 2-1 lead in their NL series.
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Roger Clemens has been pitching so well that his Houston Astros teammates feel they merely need to get on the board to win. Clemens limited Pittsburgh to one run over six innings to win his fourth in a row, extending his surge of late-season pitching for a fast-fading team as the Astros beat the Pirates 5-1 Friday night.
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Andy Pettitte pitched six effective innings, Mike Lamb drove in three runs and the Houston Astros scored two runs on a wild pitch by Mark Prior in a 7-2 win over the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday.
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Houston, TX -- Roger Clemens pitched seven strong innings to win his fourth straight start and was supported by four first-inning homers, as the red-hot Houston Astros completed a three-game sweep of Cincinnati with a 5-2 victory and matched a franchise
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Carlos Beltran's record-tying eighth  post-season home run capped the Houston Astros' 6-5 comeback  win over the St. Louis Cardinals to even the National League  Championship Series at two games apiece Sunday.
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Craig Biggio led off the game with his second home run of the postseason and Roger Clemens had a strong beginning, giving the Houston Astros a 2-1 lead over the St. Louis Cardinals after four innings in Game 7 of the NL championship series on Thursday night.
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Game-winning homers are becoming routine for the Houston Astros. Hunter Pence hit a solo shot off Jose Mesa on the first pitch of the 13th inning and the Astros took advantage of a questionable umpire's call to beat the Philadelphia Phillies 5-4 on Tuesday night.
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The News Sports Writer. HOUSTON -- Brandon Backe grew up an Astros fan in Galveston. He returns to that familiar role today, yelling and screaming his head off from Houston&#39;s dugout.
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Brandon Backe pitched six strong  innings and Morgan Ensberg drove in three runs to secure the  Houston Astros an 8-5 divisional playoff victory over the  Atlanta Braves Saturday.
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WASHINGTON,  - Brandon Backe allowed two runs in five-plus innings, as Houston seized Major League Baseball&#39;s final playoff spot with a 5-3 triumph over the Colorado Rockies.
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Lance Berkman hit a three-run homer off Dustin Hermanson in the ninth inning, and the Houston Astros rallied from a late three-run deficit for a 7-3 victory over the San Francisco Giants on Friday night.
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Brad Lidge saved a victory for Roger Clemens with an extended work day, and the surging Houston Astros scored three runs on a ground ball Saturday to beat the Chicago Cubs 7-6. Clemens (14-4) allowed five runs and eight hits in a six-inning stint on a cool, windy day at Wrigley Field to get his 324th career win.
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Brandon Backe, a little-known local,  who arrived in the shadow of famous hometown heroes Roger  Clemens and Andy Pettitte last winter, brought the Houston  Astros to within a game of the franchise's first postseason  series victory in an 8-5 win over the Atlanta Braves Saturday.
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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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The Astros have counted Nolan Ryan, Mike Scott and Randy Johnson among their postseason starting pitchers. Though Backe didn&#39;t get the victory in the Astros&#39; 3-0 win over St.
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No bullpen collapse by the Houston Astros this time. Brad Lidge was on the mound. The Astros closer allowed just one hit and struck out five in two innings Saturday, protecting a lead and helping Houston beat the St. Louis Cardinals 5-2 in Game 3 of the NL championship series.