Jose Altuve 9th Player to Hit 3 HR in Playoff Game vs. Red Sox in 2017 ALDS

Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve hit three solo home runs in Thursday's Game 1 of the ALDS against the Boston Red Sox, becoming the ninth player in MLB history to hit at least three home runs in a postseason game. 

Altuve went deep off Red Sox starter Chris Sale in the first and fifth innings and hit his third homer off Austin Maddox in the seventh. Sean McAdam of the Boston Sports Journal passed along the stats.

The Astros hit four home runs, all solo, and never trailed in their 8-2 win. 

Altuve is the first player to complete the feat since Pablo Sandoval went deep three times in Game 1 of the 2012 World Series. The San Francisco Giants went on to win that series, a positive sign for an Astros team making their second postseason appearance in the last decade.

Thursday's breakout is just the latest big night in a season full of them for Altuve, who is competing with Aaron Judge for the AL MVP. The All-Star hit .346/.410/.547 with 24 home runs and 81 runs batted in with 32 steals. FanGraphs' WAR formula ranked Altuve second behind Judge.

"He's just never satisfied," Houston manager A.J. Hinch told Scott Miller of Bleacher Report. "He has some very innocent reactions to infield hits, to bloop hits, how much he needs them, how much he wants them.

"The guys give him a hard time because of all the people in the league who you feel don't need hits, it's probably Jose Altuve. Yet he loves every one of them."

While he appreciates all hits, odds are Altuve is fonder of these postseason homers rather than a few bloop singles.