BATS GET CRACKING, FORCE A GAME 7
Even after building a 6-run lead, Astros kept fans on edge of their seats
Nervous fans filtered into Minute Maid Park under gray skies Friday. After stumbling through three games in New York, the Astros had returned to Houston one loss away from spoiling the team’s best season in two decades. Our reporter roamed the ballpark during Game 6 of the ALCS, eavesdropping as fans voiced worry, excitement, frustration — and hope. Would the Astros force a Game 7, or would they once again send fans home in tears?
PREGAME
“Beer, here! Ice cold beer, here!” “Peanuts, get your peanuts!” “I’m not paying $5 for a bottle of water.” “How much did you pay to park?” “I don’t want to talk about it.”
“We’ll be in good shape if we get the bats going.” “You can’t win if you don’t get hits.” “That’s right.” “We also need (Justin) Verlander to shut them down.”
“Dear God, who’s that (taking batting practice)?” Crack. “Aaron Judge.” Crack. “He’s crushing the ball.” Crack. “Yeah.” Crack. “We’ll be OK.” “I still think this is our year.”
FIRST INNING Astros 0, Yankees 0
“Strike him out Justin!” “Three outs, one, two, three.” “That’s how you pitch to start a game.” “Now let’s get some hits.” “Let’s go Altuve!” “Come on little man.” “Dang it.” “He hasn’t been hitting.”
“Can you get me nachos?”
SECOND INNING Astros 0, Yankees 0
“Verlander can pitch man.” “Now we just need to get these guys on base.” “They’re trying to do too much.” “Springer’s out there trying to kill the ball.” “Popped him out.” “Shoot.” “Nobody is hitting for us.”
THIRD INNING Astros 0, Yankees 0
“What’s with the Yankees hat?” “I was originally from Rhode Island.” “Yeah? I hate the Yankees.” “I tell you what, I’ve lived here since ’66, and I still can’t stand the heat.”
“Springer can’t hit anything.” “Strike three.” “This is getting ridiculous.”
“This is starting to stress me out.”
“Can you tell me how to get to the smoke deck?”
FOURTH INNING Astros 0, Yankees 0
“I remember back in the day, they let you smoke in the Astrodome.” “You’re kidding me.” “Yeah man, the smoke would just hang in the air.” “Now we’re sitting out here, crowded around a TV smaller than the one in my living room.”
“Come on Astros.” “They haven’t hit a thing in four games.” “Come on!” “I think our hitters are nervous.”
“Was that Altuve?” “Yes.” “Altuve struck out?” “Yes.”
“I’m getting nervous.” “Give me another cigarette.”
FIFTH INNING Astros 0, Yankees 0
“Is this the line for the restroom?” “The men’s room?” “I’m going to miss an entire inning in this line.” “It’s not like there’s anything to see.” “At least Verlander is pitching well.” “I’ve got a feeling this one’s gonna be close.” “I wish we’d score a freaking run.”
“Let’s go McCann! Drive them in!” “This is a big at bat.”
“Come on, come on, come on, come on.” “Yes! Yes! Yes!” “That’s what we’ve been waiting for.” “Let’s score some more.” “Altuve!” “MVP! MVP! MVP!” “We’re going to the World Series. I’m telling you.”
SIXTH INNING Astros 3, Yankees 0
“Man, Aaron Judge is like 7-feet tall.” “Strike him out Verlander.” “Yes!”
“Yankees suck! Yankees suck! Yankees suck!”
SEVENTH INNING Astros 3, Yankees 0
“Let me buy you an Astros hat.” “Don’t you want to root for a winner?” “At least let me buy you a beer. Your boys are going down.”
“Look, Verlander’s only thrown 80 pitches.” “He might pitch another complete game.” “Dude, have you seen his girlfriend?”
“Oh my God that’s a home run.” “Get it, get it, get it.” “Springer!” “That was a … catch man.” “Wow.”
“The prairie sky ... is wide and high … deep in the heart of Texas.”
“How many beers have you had?” “I’m just getting started. We’re gonna win tonight, and then we’re gonna win tomorrow.” “I hope so.”
EIGHTH INNING Astros 3, Yankees 0
“Why’d they pull Verlander?” “I would have left him in and ridden him to the end.” “I don’t get this team sometimes.”
“That Judge is overrated.” “Strike him out!” Crack. “Holy …” “How far did he hit that?” “Far.” “It’s just one run.”
“Come on, let’s add a couple runs.” “Altuve will get us going.” Crack. “Altuve!” Crack. “Correa!” Crack. “Gurriel!” Crack. “Bregman!” “That was the best inning I’ve ever seen.”
“You know what, I’m glad the Yankees won those three games. Let them get their hopes up, now we’re going to stomp them.” “That’s brutal.” “They deserve it.”
NINTH INNING Astros 7, Yankees 1
“We’ve got a six-run lead. No way Giles can blow this one.” “Two more outs.” “I don’t care how many runs we have. I can’t relax until it’s over.” “There you go, one more.”
“Where are you going? The game’s not over yet.” “Bye, bye Yankees.” “Ballgame!” “Astros! Astros! Astros!”
EXITING Astros 7, Yankees 1, Final
“That’s how you play baseball.” “See you tomorrow night, baby.” “I’ll be here.”
“I’m not going to sleep in these clothes, and then wear them to game tomorrow.” “Let’s all do it.” “That’s a good idea.” “You gotta stick with what works.”
“I knew were going to win.” “Me, too.”
“I’m really think we can beat the Dodgers.”