Jose Altuve #27 of the Houston Astros celebrates with Carlos Beltran #15 after scoring a run against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Park in Arlington on September 27, 2017 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) - Justin Verlander struck out 11 to win his fifth straight start since getting traded to Houston, major league batting leader Jose Altuve reached 200 hits for the fourth season in a row, and the AL West champion Astros completed a dominating three-game sweep by routing the Texas Rangers 12-2 on Wednesday.
Carlos Correa hit two home runs and George Springer had a grand slam as Houston (98-60) outscored Texas 37-7 in the series. The Astros are trying to catch Cleveland for the best record in the American League - the Central champion Indians began the day at 98-59.
Correa went deep in consecutive innings, hitting a solo shot in the fifth and a two-run homer soon after Springer's slam in a seven-run sixth. Correa had four hits and drove in four runs.
The Rangers (76-82), who had won the AL West the past two seasons, lost their sixth straight game.
Verlander (15-8) matched his season high for strikeouts while allowing two runs in six innings. The right-hander is 5-0 with a 1.06 ERA in his five starts since being traded from Detroit to Houston on Aug. 31.