I’m not a big fan of evaluating the character of individuals through their work, particularly when it comes to sports. I think we, as a culture, extrapolate far too much about people from the outcome of a bounce of a ball. That said, the Astros can’t feel too good about themselves this morning; when you’re tied with three games to play at home against one of the worst teams in the league, you’d like to think you could at least avoid getting eliminated in the quickest fashion possible. The Astros were blown out Friday night—down 9-1 after an inning and a half—and scored just two runs in yesterday’s defeat. It was a disappointing performance by a team that had led the division for most of the second half, and which was set up to control its own destiny when the weekend began. However, if you want to judge the Astros, what’s clear is that their collapse, and the Cubs’ taking advantage of it, changes the Division Series. With Friday’s rainout leading to Saturday’s doubleheader, and the possibility of playing meaningful games Sunday and even Monday, the Cubs were looking at having to open the Division Series with Shawn Estes and not having their top two starters available until Game 3 at the earliest. Against the best-hitting team in the league, one loaded with right-handed power, that was a recipe for disaster. Having clinched, the Cubs can set Kerry Wood aside for Game One on Tuesday. With no playoff to play Monday, Carlos Zambrano is available to start Game Two, and Mark Prior can start Game Three Friday on four days’ rest.