A's Win First Postseason Series Since 2006, Will Face Astros in ALDS

Despite falling to the Chicago White Sox in Game 1 of the AL Wild Card Series, the Oakland Athletics rebounded with consecutive wins in Games 2 and 3 to snag their first postseason series victory in 14 years, advancing to the ALDS for the first time since 2013.

After digging a 3-0 hole in Thursday's decisive Game 3, Oakland rallied with four runs in the fourth inning to take the lead.

However, their biggest hit of the afternoon came in the bottom of the fifth, with the score tied 4-4.

In perhaps the most crucial plate appearance of his life, Chad Pinder stepped to the plate with an opportunity to defy history.

Prior to this at-bat, Pinder had posted a 2-for-35 career mark with the bases loaded.

However, on Thursday, he came up with a massive two-run single to propel the A's to a 6-4 advantage.

And they didn't look back.

Oakland now looks forward to a best-of-5 series with the Houston Astros to be played on neutral ground at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

Needless to say, these division rivals have a fair amount of history.

Any animosity between the squads likely escalated following the Astros' cheating scandal of 2017-2018.

However, tensions came to a head on Sunday, August 9, when A's center fielder Ramon Laureano was hit by a pitch in consecutive plate appearances.

As Laureano stood at first, Astros' hitting coach Alex Cintron seemed intent on baiting him into charging the Houston dugout. 

Laureano took this bait, sparking a bench-clearing brawl in the midst of a global pandemic.

In head-to-head meetings, Oakland went 7-3 against Houston this season, outscoring them 36-25 during these 10 matchups.

Nonetheless, bouncing the Houston Astros could prove to be a tough task, as this team has now qualified for the ALCS in three consecutive seasons (winning the World Series in 2017 and making another appearance in 2019).

Houston enters the ALDS having swept the Minnesota Twins (who have now lost a record-setting 18 consecutive postseason contests) in a two-game series.

Astros' shortstop Carlos Correa emerged from the series with confidence, saying in a recent interview, "I know a lot of people are mad. I know a lot of people don't want to see us here. But what are they going to say now?"

Meanwhile, the A's may have managed to battle back against a young Chicago White Sox squad in the AL Wild Card Series, but if they wish to shake their recent postseason woes, they must avoid falling behind in a Divisional Series against established postseason veterans.

While neither team has announced their starting rotation yet, this best-of-5 series is scheduled to be played in five consecutive days -- from Monday, October 5 to Friday, October 9.

Thus, Oakland will need strong performances from their starting rotation to spare their bullpen and allow them an opportunity to play for the AL Pennant.

First pitch of Game 1 is scheduled for Monday at 1:07 PM PST.

What are your thoughts on this series?

Feel free to let me know in the comments section below and don't forget to "Subscribe" for future post notifications :)