Astros Clinch Home-Field Advantage Throughout 2022 AL Playoffs with Yankees Loss

Having already locked up a division title, the Houston Astros secured home-field advantage for the American League playoffs Friday.

The Astros clinched the AL's best record thanks to the New York Yankees' 2-1 loss to the Baltimore Orioles.

Houston sealed its sixth consecutive postseason berth on Sept. 16. It won the AL West three days later with a 4-0 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays. It marks the fifth division title in the past six years for the franchise.

While most of the attention in the AL this season was on the New York Yankees, the Astros quietly blew past them for the league's best record. They took advantage of the Pinstripers' second-half collapse to get there, but they have also been phenomenal with a 43-22 record since the All-Star break leading into Friday.

The Astros entered the All-Star weekend with a 59-32 record, 4.5 games behind the Yankees for the top spot. They moved into sole possession of first place on Aug. 12 and never looked back.

Houston has won at least 100 games for the fourth time since 2017. It had just one 100-win season in its first 54 years of existence from 1962-2016.

During this run of success, the Astros have had home-field advantage twice in the playoffs (2017 and 2019). They made it to the World Series both years, winning in 2017. They also got to the Fall Classic last year as the No. 2 seed in the AL but lost to the Atlanta Braves in six games.

The Astros are the only team in Major League Baseball with at least one playoff series win in each of the past five seasons. They can extend this run to six seasons by playing a majority of their games in the AL Division Series from the comforts of Minute Maid Park.