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Astros eliminated from ALCS, but don't count them out next October

The shine on the team's 2017 World Series rings has hardly worn off, and the club enters the offseason with a deep core of young and immensely talented position players, a pair of aces set to return to front their rotation next, a sharp and creative front office dedicated to maintaining a perennial contender, and as sunny an outlook for 2019 as any in Major League Baseball.

HOUSTON -- In the big-picture, this is a good time to be a member of the Houston Astros.

The shine on the team’s 2017 World Series rings has hardly worn off, and the club enters the offseason with a deep core of young and immensely talented position players, a pair of aces set to return to front their rotation next, a sharp and creative front office dedicated to maintaining a perennial contender, and as sunny an outlook for 2019 as any in Major League Baseball.

But it’d be hard to know that from looking around a shell-shocked clubhouse after the team’s series-ending loss to the Boston Red Sox in the ALCS on Thursday. After a convincing win in the series opener, the Astros dropped four straight to the 108-win Boston club, the final three of them in their home park, including a heartbreaking, umpire-assisted defeat in a tense game Wednesday and a Game 5 that ended with the tying run on deck.

“I think when you set the bar as high as our team did, it’s always disappointing to lose, and it’s a tough pill to swallow,” said outfielder George Springer. “But you know what? Sometimes you have to give credit to the other guys. They got the big hits in the big situations, made the big pitch, made the big play. That’s the game.”

“They played better than us,” said third baseman Alex Bregman. “It was a tough-fought series, they’re a very good team, and ... yeah. Just disappointed. To be honest with y’all, this year’s team was better than last year’s team, I believe.

"The ball’s got to bounce your way in the postseason. It’s tough. We’ll learn from it. Everyone in here will have a little bit of an edge to play with next year, a little bit of a chip on their shoulder, knowing that we believe we should’ve been back to back champions.”

While the players were careful to credit the Red Sox for outplaying them in the series, few seemed willing to concede they lost to a better team. Several key Astros played through injuries this October, including shortstop Carlos Correa -- dealing with an aching back -- and 2016 MVP Jose Altuve, who was reduced to serving as designated hitter in Games 4 and 5 due to a knee injury that left him visibly hobbled on the field.

“These guys gave everything they had,” said Justin Verlander, the Game 5 starter. “It didn’t quite happen. I still like this team a lot.

"I’m not going to sit here and make excuses -- the Red Sox won. I really would’ve liked for this team to be healthy, top to bottom, but at this point, I guarantee if you talk to their clubhouse … everybody’s dealing with something. It was blatantly obvious for some of the series with some of our guys.“

Not every member of the club will necessarily return in 2019. Switch-hitter Marwin Gonzalez, whose extraordinary defensive flexibility opened countless options for manager A.J. Hinch over the past few years, is slated for free agency this winter. So is Dallas Keuchel, a valuable member of the starting rotation and the club’s longest tenured pitcher.

“It’s a weird feeling,” Keuchel said. “I don’t know where I’m going to be next year, and I put my heart and soul into this team for seven years.

"I’d love to be here for the long haul, but I know the business side doesn’t always meet the human side, so we’ll see”

While some Astros showered and dressed and visited the trainer’s room after the game, others sat quietly by their lockers, ironing out offseason plans they put off under the assumption they’d still be playing baseball this weekend.

“There’s nothing like looking at a clubhouse and seeing all your teammates with their heads down, and just constantly thinking about what we could’ve done differently,” said veteran outfielder Josh Reddick. “It will never, ever be fun, no matter how many times you get to do it or how long you play this game.”

Nearly every Astros player who spoke to media after the loss mentioned learning from the series, or using it as motivation in offseason workouts. Altuve said he’d visit with the team’s medical staff in a few days to figure out how to proceed with his knee.

Correa said he thought some time off will help his back heal.

And all seemed eager to praise their teammates for hard work in a season that saw the Astros win 103 games and sweep the Indians in the ALDS, only to come up short against Boston.

“It’s devastating to lose when we know what kind of team we have,” Correa said. “But at the same time, they played really good baseball. We did everything we could. You have to tip your hat to the Boston Red Sox. ... It’s baseball. It’s a tough game. Sometimes it hurts you.”

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