It was their own fan base.The Astros, who came into this MLB postseason as baseball’s first-ever division winner with a .500 or worse record, entered Daikin Park in Houston to see a pretty empty stadium in comparison to past playoff matchups.CLICK HERE FOR MORE OUTKICK SPORTS COVERAGEA general view of Daikin Park before Game 1 of the American League Wild Card Series between the Chicago White Sox and the Houston Astros on Tuesday, Sept.29, 2026, in Houston, Texas.
(MLB Photos)It was quite noticeable, especially in the upper deck, that there were loads of empty seats.Daikin Park eventually announced an attendance of 34,011, with the ballpark holding a capacity of 40,963.Could it have been the 4:10 p.m.
local-time first pitch on a Tuesday? That could certainly be a factor, as MLB spaces these Wild Card Series games out for national viewing purposes despite odd weekday times that cut into a usual workday.THE CRAIG CARTON SHOW–UNFILTERED, UNAPOLOGETIC AND UNMISSABLE.DOWNLOAD HIS DAILY PODCAST NOW!Either way, Astros players were not happy when they started hearing boos rain down onto the field as the White Sox took an early lead on the road."It’s extremely frustrating as a home player," Astros first baseman Christian Walker admitted to The Athletic about hearing jeers from the home crowd.
"We’re here, playing at home; we need cheers.We need energy.
We don’t need boos.What purpose does that serve in that moment? Whatever fans are feeling, we’re feeling it tenfold.
We’re the ones out there.We’re the ones in the fight.
We worked our butts off this whole season to put ourselves in this spot, and for guys to get booed, it’s frustrating."Chicago ended up taking Game 1, 6-3, in a contest that saw both teams put together a bullpen game, which favored the White Sox in the end.Isaac Paredes, Jeremy Peña, Jose Altuve and Christian Walker of the Houston Astros look on in the sixth inning against the Chicago White Sox in Game 1 of the American League Wild Card...