Josh Hader faced relentless boos from the Houston crowd as he entered from the Astros bullpen in the eighth inning for a multi-inning save at Petco Park. His refusal to pitch in similar situations with the Padres added extra intensity to the moment.

There’s a lot of baseball still to be played before the World Series comes our way in late October, but the three-game series between the Astros and Padres this week at Petco Park left both teams thinking of a possible Fall Classic matchup.

Astros starter Framber Valdez made one mistake in seven innings, and it ended up handing him a tough-luck loss as he was outdueled by the Padres' Dylan Cease.