If you’re looking for an upstart team to make a last-minute surge to a playoff berth, don’t bet on it. What the Colorado Rockies did a year ago -- winning 14 of their last 15 games, including a one-game playoff -- isn’t likely to happen again anytime soon.

Still, it could be fun to watch the Houston Astros over the final 20 days of the season. In August, for only the second month this season, the Astros posted a winning record, going 21-9. They failed to gain any ground on the first-place Cubs, however, as Chicago went 20-8 to maintain a 14-game edge over fourth-place Houston.

The Astros, who are in the midst of an 11-1 surge, have moved to within 9.5 games of the Cubs heading into Tuesday’s action. They closed August by sweeping a three-game set from division rival St. Louis, and then went on the road to take three straight from the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Their schedule looks favorable, as the Astros still have six games with the Pirates and three more with the Reds. There’s also a three-game series at home with the Cubs this weekend.

Houston is a long shot to overtake both Chicago and Milwaukee, of course, but the red-hot Astros are just five games out of the National League wild-card berth. Still, it will take some magic to jump over the three clubs ahead of them in the wild-card chase.

The Rockies know all about September magic, and perhaps the Astros experienced some of their own last night. When they defeated Pittsburgh, 3-2, to move 10 games over .500 for the first time in 2008, they received a key contribution from a 28-year-old rookie making his major league debut.

In the fifth inning of a scoreless game, Mark Saccomanno stepped to the plate as a pinch-hitter and drilled a home run on the first major league pitch he saw. He became just the fourth Astro to homer in his first big league at-bat, and the 22nd player to hit a home run on his first major league pitch.

It’ll take a lot more magic than that for the Astros, who are done playing the Brewers, the leader in the race for the NL wild-card spot. Forget about a miracle -- what the Rockies did in 2007 probably won’t happen again for decades -- but Houston fans have to be pleased with the down-the-stretch success of their retooled Astros.