HOUSTON — The Houston Astros won the American League West on Sunday despite finishing the regular season with an 81-81 record, becoming the first team in MLB history to win a division with a .500 or worse record.
Houston entered the final day tied with the Texas Rangers at 80-81, but the Astros held the tiebreaker after winning the season series between the teams.
The Rangers lost 6-4 to the Minnesota Twins, which eliminated their chance to overtake Houston and allowed the Astros to clinch the division.
Houston then completed its regular season with a 9-0 victory over the Athletics to finish at .500.
The Astros will enter the postseason as the No. 3 seed among the American League division champions and will face the No. 6 Chicago White Sox in the wild-card round.
The New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox will meet in the other American League wild-card series as the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds, respectively.
All three wild-card teams finished the regular season with better records than Houston.
Astros reach postseason after turbulent season
Houston secured a playoff berth after a season that included the August departure of general manager Dana Brown.
The Astros, Rangers and Seattle Mariners remained in contention for the AL West title late in the season, while the Athletics and Los Angeles Angels finished outside the division race.
Houston’s division title gives the franchise another postseason appearance despite its .500 regular-season record.
The Astros celebrated the division championship after Sunday’s victory over the Athletics.