Espada says he understands fans' frustrations after Game 1 boos

HOUSTON -- Astros manager Joe Espada said Wednesday he understood the frustration of fans who showered his team with loud boos at different points in Tuesday’s 6-3 loss to the White Sox in Game 1 of the American League Wild Card Series, which was Houston’s eighth consecutive postseason loss at Daikin Park.

“The way I see it, I understand both sides,” Espada said before Game 2. “There's frustration. Our players and the fans have the right to also show their emotions, and I get it. But one thing I do know is that our players love our fans. We respect our fans. We need our fans. We need the energy from our fans. We feed off that.”

Astros fans booed reliever Bryan King after he was pulled in the second inning, having allowed all five batters he faced that inning to reach. Another left-hander, Bennett Sousa, heard some boos when he threw a pair of wild pitches in the seventh inning, including one that allowed a run to score.

Espada said he did talk to “the players” without naming specific names, though Sousa and baseman Christian Walker were vocal speaking out against the boos in a story published late Tuesday by The Athletic (subscription required). Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez said postgame Wednesday through an interpreter the crowd reaction was expected.

“Frustrated we weren’t able to get them the victory that we wanted to give them, but [Wednesday], we’re going to try and go out and give them the win they deserve,” he said.

The Astros haven’t won a home playoff game since Game 1 of the 2023 AL Division Series against the Twins. They lost all four games at home in the 2023 AL Championship Series against the Rangers and were swept in the Wild Card Series by the Tigers in ‘24. Houston was 39-42 at home in the regular season this year.

Tuesday’s crowd of 34,011 was well below capacity at Daikin Park and was one of the smallest home crowds the club has had during its run of nine playoff appearances in 10 seasons. Houston made the playoffs with an 81-81 record and spent most of the season trying to recover from a 20-31 start, but it rallied to clinch the AL West title in Game 162 of the regular season Sunday.

“We want our fans to be proud of us,” Espada said. “I've been here for almost a decade and I get it. I get booed, too. But that's part of it. And I love our fans. I go to the grocery store and I talk to the fans. I go and I drop my kids off at school and I talk to the parents. They're fans. And I love our fans. We win here and that's part of it.

“But what I do tell the players is just to show their respect, show that they're on our side. But again, we compete and sometimes that stuff happens. We'll put that on the backburner and we'll get ready to play today.”