BATON ROUGE, La. — Former LSU right-hander Will Harris pitched a perfect eighth inning for the Houston Astros Tuesday night in New York, helping the Astros blank the Yankees, 3-0, and advance to the American League Division Series.
The Astros will meet the Kansas City Royals in Game 1 of the best-of-five division series Thursday night in Kansas City.
Harris retired the Yankees’ Didi Gregorius, Brett Gardner and Jacoby Ellsbury in order in the eighth inning Tuesday night on just 11 pitches.
Harris, a native of Slidell, La., has enjoyed an outstanding season out of the Astros’ bullpen, posting a 5-5 mark and a 1.90 ERA in 68 appearances with 22 walks and 68 strikeouts in 71 innings. He is listed among the Top 25 among American League relievers in appearances and holds (13).
Harris was the ninth-round selection of the Colorado Rockies in 2006, and he made his MLB debut with the Rockies in August 2012. He pitched the 2013 and 2014 seasons for the Arizona Diamondbacks before joining the Astros prior to this season.
Harris lettered four season at LSU (2003-06), helping the Tigers reach the College World Series in 2003 and 2004. An extremely versatile performer, he was a starter at first base for two seasons (2004, 2005) and a starter at third base for one season (2006), and he also worked as a relief pitcher in 2006.
Harris made 16 career appearances on the mound for LSU, recording four saves and 22 strikeouts in 22 innings. He blasted 19 homers during his LSU career, including a three-run dinger against Texas A&M in Game 2 of the 2004 NCAA Super Regional that clinched a CWS berth for the Tigers.