Sep 7, 2025; Anaheim, California, USA; Athletics left fielder Tyler Soderstrom (21) is greeted by teammates after hitting a home run against the Los Angeles Angels during the seventh inning at Angel Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Liang-Imagn Images William Liang-Imagn Images

Tyler Soderstrom Makes Bold Statement After A's Defeat Houston Astros

Originally posted on Oakland Athletics on SI
By Jason Burke | Last updated Sep 24, 2025 11:00 AM ET

The A's and Houston Astros franchises have certainly had some history over the years, but this season, it's the Athletics that have won the season series following their 5-1 win on Tuesday night in West Sacramento.

Following the win, A's left fielder Tyler Soderstrom was interviewed postgame, and was just asked to talk about the games against Houston down the stretch. Soderstrom said what any team that's playing spoiler would say: "We're coming into this series kind of wanting to play spoiler, and we got off to a good start tonight.

"We're ready to keep it goin' and put an end to their season."

There's little chance that an opposing fan base will enjoy those comments, especially with their team fighting for a spot in the postseason (and it not looking so good at the moment). For A's fans, that's exactly what they want to hear. This team has been playing some solid ball outside of that now infamous 1-20 stretch, and looks like they could be in the postseason hunt themselves next year.

If the A's do end up fighting for the AL West or a Wild Card spot, then there could be members of the Astros that say the same thing about the A's. These two teams will end the 2026 season with a four game series in West Sacramento.

Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

That all said, the A's are showing that they're not scared of the Astros at all this season. They currently lead the season series 7-4, and have won five straight against Houston since the All Star break, and six straight overall. Three of Houston's wins came in the middle of that 1-20 run the A's had from May 6 through June 4.

Outside of that run of games, the A's have gone 73-63, which is a .536 win percentage and an 87-win pace. That's right in line with where Houston is at with 84 wins currently (and five to play) and a .535 winning percentage.

No Curses Here

Soderstrom's comments shouldn't end up cursing the team like when Cole Irvin said of the Seattle Mariners in 2021, "Yeah, there was a lot of weak contact and some swings that ended up being hits. But I think at the end of the day, just pitch execution needs to be a lot better and a team like that should not be putting up 10 hits against me or anyone.”

The A's ended up going 17-47 against the Mariners from 2021-24 as the A's struggled through their rebuild. It wasn't until this year, as the green and gold ended up with a 6-7 record against the M's that they kept things fairly close.

In order for the Athletics to make it into the postseason, they're going to have to be better than at least one of the Mariners or Astros in any given season in the coming years, and continuing to pile up wins the rest of this series would certainly be a step in the right direction for the franchise.

This article first appeared on Oakland Athletics on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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