5-2: El Bombi and the Rangers defeat Houston 10-2 to earn a Silver Boot honor.

The Texas Rangers scored ten runs while the Houston Astros scored two runs.

You’ll never hear it from me, but the Silver Boot has always been something of a joke. The Astros and Rangers? Rivals? Please. That was a forced marriage to appease Tom Hicks first and finally a forced union in our hallowed division when Houston was dragged kicking and screaming out of the NL Central in favor of balanced schedules.

But this year, after the Rangers and Astros have had their fair share of heated battles and especially now that they’ve met in the postseason, there is a sense that perhaps beating Houston actually means something. In October, in perhaps the most intense series the Rangers have played since 2011, it meant a trip back to the World Series and then that meant a banner and rings and a seat at the table forevermore.

Tonight, after Texas had lost every Lone Star series to Houston since the 2016 season and with the Rangers having playoff bragging rights but with them also having lost eight in a row to the Astros at The Shed dating back to last July. The Silver Boot feels different and the chip on the shoulder of each of these teams when facing their in-state rivals have never been larger.