HOUSTON _ Carlos Correa's double drove in Jose Altuve from first base with the winning run, giving the Astros a sudden 2-1 victory in Game 2 of the AL Championship Series against the Yankees.
By beating Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman, the Astros take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series, which resumes Monday night in the Bronx.
Justin Verlander got the victory, going all nine innings in a 124-pitch effort, on a day when Yanks starter Luis Severino lasted just four innings.
Altuve singled with one out in the ninth and Correa drove one to right field. The relay went to second base and the throw home was in time _ but bounced to the plate, where catcher Gary Sanchez couldn't corral it as Altuve slid across the plate.
With two out and none on in the Astros fourth inning, a hard comebacker by Yuri Gurriel caught the left palm/wrist area of the right-handed Severino, who made the play but winced in pain as he came off the mound.
Severino did not come out for the fifth inning.
But there was no immediate report from the Yankees' clubhouse if that was the circumstance that led to Severino's exit after just 62 pitches.
Tommy Kahnle entered in relief and pitched two strong, scoreless innings, facing the minimum as Brian McCann grounded into a double play to end the fifth.
Verlander had begun the top of the fifth by striking out Greg Bird and Starlin Castro, but the Yanks finally broke through on back-to-back doubles by Aaron Hicks and Todd Frazier.
After Hicks' drive to center field, Frazier drove him in on a ball that bounced high in deepest left center field and got caught in the chain link fence above the padded wall for a grounds rule double.
But the inning ended when designated hitter Chase Headley lined out to center; to that point the Yankees' DH spot was a combined 0 or 25 in the playoffs.
Headley nearly ended that drought in his previous at bat, but his one-out drive to right field was caught atop the fence by Josh Reddick, to the delight of 43,193 orange-clad fans.
Next up, Brett Gardner lashed an extra-base hit down the right field line _ only to wind up regretting his bid for a triple, with Aaron Judge on deck.
As the cutoff man on the outfield side of second base, Carlos Correa made a quick catch and release of Reddick's relay, firing a bullet to third.
Gardner was originally called safe by third base umpire Jerry Meals, but the Astros successfully overturned the call on a replay challenge. After applauding Reddick's catch from the mound on the previous play, Verlander pumped his fist and shouted in celebration at the reviewed third out.
Severino only had one clean inning, but he'd really regret just one pitch, which Correa drove just over the right-field wall for a 1-0 lead in the fourth.
The ball only landed in the first row, and the home run call on the field had to survive a crew chief challenge _ a sort of Jeffrey Maier moment in reverse.
As Aaron Judge ran toward the right-field wall in pursuit, a young fan in an Astros jersey extended his glove for the ball, which glanced off the kid's mitt. But the replay showed the ball had cleared the fence when the contact was made.
During Game 1 of the 1996 ALCS against Baltimore, well before replay review, Derek Jeter's fly ball to right field at the original Yankee Stadium was ruled a home run by right-field umpire Richie Garcia. In reality, the young Maier had extended his glove over the wall.
Orioles' outfielder Tony Tarasco, camped under the ball, was livid at Garcia's call, becoming part of Yankees postseason lore.
The Yankees went on to win that game, and eventually, win the World Series.
All told, Severino gave up one run on two hits and two walks, and did not strike out a batter. Yankees starter Masahiro Tanaka only struck out three Astros in his six innings in Friday's 2-1 Astros victory in Game 1.
