Gerrit Cole shuts down Rays once more, pitches Astros into

HOUSTON — Gerrit Cole pitched one other playoff masterpiece and the Houston Astros jumped to a fast lead, turning again the Tampa Bay Rays 6-1 Thursday evening in Game 5 to arrange a titanic showdown with the New York Yankees within the AL Championship Series. After fellow aces Zack Greinke and Justin Verlander had been unable to shut out the scrappy Rays on the street, Cole made certain Houston moved on. Given a 4-Zero cushion within the first inning, he dominated via the eighth within the decisive sport of the AL Division Series, placing out 10 and permitting simply two hits. On deck, the heavyweight matchup so many followers needed to see: Jose Altuve and the