Morton proves to be the ‘perfect guy to start’ in shutout win
Pitcher recovers from earlier loss in series to help claim pennant
If there were any doubts whether Charlie Morton was up to the task, he answered them in resounding fashion.
For the Astros, that helped put them on the road to the World Series.
Morton tossed five shutout innings in Saturday’s 4-0 victory over the New York Yankees in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series, giving the Astros just the lift they needed in the franchise’s biggest game in a dozen years.
Up next: the World Series against the Dodgers, beginning Tuesday in Los Angeles.
Saving his best for last
The Astros arguably wouldn’t be heading there if not for Morton, who answered the call in the biggest start of his 10-season career.
And it came against the team he rooted for while growing up in Connecticut.
“I really tried not to think about it,” Morton said. “I was just trying to focus on making pitches and having faith in the guys behind me. It was such a great team win.
“It’s just unbelievable. And there’s no group better (to do it with). Such a deserving group of people and organization. ”
Catcher Brian McCann said it was clear Morton was on his game quite early.
“(I knew it) from the first pitch of the game,” McCann said. “He threw a four seam fastball 97 (mph) that I know as a hitter, it’s going to be hard to see.”
Morton was efficient, needing just 32 pitches to get through the first four innings, allowing only a leadoff single in the second.
“I just tried to stay aggressive,” Morton said. “I think Mac did a great job. We went with our strengths and went with what was working. We didn’t try to force anything. They were pretty aggressive early and put some balls in play. We made some plays and it worked out.”
Before the game, manager A.J. Hinch said Morton’s calm demeanor would be a factor in helping put the Astros in a good position to win, making him “the perfect guy to start the game.”
Morton’s calmness never was more evident than than during the fifth inning. After Evan Gattis’ homer in the previous frame staked the Astros to a 1-0 lead, Morton found himself in an immediate jam after Greg Bird’s leadoff double.
After striking out Starlin Castro, Morton walked Aaron Hicks on four pitches, with a wild pitch allowing Bird to take third.
With the tying run 90 feet away, Morton bore down. He induced a weak grounder from Todd Frazier, with third baseman Alex Bregman making a strong throw home that McCann snared and then laid a tag on the oncoming Bird.
Morton then put down the uprising by getting Chase Headley to ground out, ending his night.
“He pitched as well as you can pitch and got out of a jam there in the fifth,” McCann said.
Game 4 starter Lance McCullers picked up where Morton left off, tossing four shutout innings to punch the Astros’ first World Series ticket since 2005. Finding a fit in Houston
As the Astros celebrated during the on-field trophy presentation, Morton’s wife, Cindy, watched her husband do a variety of interviews while corralling their three children: sons Charles V and Benji and daughter Grace.
“It’s just unbelievable,” Cindy said. “It hasn’t even hit me yet that we’re going to the World Series.
“Going into this game, I was surprisingly calm even though it was Game 7. I felt good about it and I’m so proud of him. I think (starting Game 3) at Yankee Stadium, he was a little bit more nervous.”
This season represented a crossroads of sorts for Morton’s career. After breaking in with the Braves, he spent parts of seven seasons with the Pirates, shuttling between Pittsburgh and the minors a few times. Last season, with the Phillies, he was limited to four starts by a torn left hamstring and underwent seasonending surgery.
He signed a two-year, $14 million deal with the Astros to ostensibly be their No. 4 starter. He then found himself called up on to pitch them to a pennant.
“He’s had a lot of injuries in his career and a lot of battling,” Cindy said. “It’s amazing. I’m so proud of him. He’s really (stuck to it) and he’s just an awesome human being.”