BYE OF RELIEF
HOUSTON — You can close down all that “opener’’ talk.
At least for this ALDS. Friday at Minute Maid Park will be old-fashioned Cy Young hardball when it comes to starting pitching. The Game 1 matchup of the Astros’ Justin Verlander against the Indians’ Corey Kluber could be one for the ages.
As much as the game has changed, having an ace still makes a world of difference and teams need to be reminded of that. If the Yankees get past the Red Sox, there will be much more than Liam Hendriks waiting for them on the other side.
Indians manager Tito Francona knows the challenge that comes from facing Verlander
“Oh, boy, he’s one of the best,’’ Francona said Thursday. “He’s been doing it for forever. Maybe about five, six years ago, it looked like he was starting to show some wear and tear, and then that went away.’’
Verlander, (16-9, 2.52) went more to his fourseam fastball and this season he led the AL in strikeouts (290), quality starts (26), opponents’ on-base percentage (.242) and WHIP (0.90). He could win his second Cy Young at the age of 35.
Of course. in two-time Cy Young winner Kluber (20-7, 2.89), Francona has one of the best. When I asked how comforting it is to have Kluber on the mound, Francona said, “We love it. I’m sure they feel the same way with Verlander. I think, as an organization or a team, you do what you think puts you in the best position. If that’s to have an opener, OK. But I know how we feel with Kluber pitching, and it’s good, and he’s earned that. Same with Verlander.
“Sometimes you have to think outside the box to get where you’re going. If we have to do that at some point, maybe we will.’’
Then Francona smiled and added: “Not tomorrow.’’
Francona’s starting pitching is in good shape, it’s his bullpen that’s an issue. And as far as the defending world champion Astros are concerned, the first three games, they will start Verlander, Gerrit Cole and Dallas Keuchel. Not bad.
There is a rhythm and know-how to starting as well.
“There’s more energy,’’ Verlander said of a postseason start. “There’s more emotion, nerves, all of it.
“It’s important. I think you look at most of the teams in the playoffs and they have some pretty clear-cut starters. Us and the Indians probably being one and two.’’
Astros manager A.J. Hinch put it in perspective, saying: “I love starters. Why? Because I’ve got good ones.’’
What makes Verlander so successful, Hinch said is “he’s always evolving. As much as everyone expects greatness out of JV and he largely delivers, he’s always evolving. He’s had this start circled for a while now. He’s got a long history with the Indians. He’s going to have to come up with the ways to combat the success or failures that he’s had and he does that on an every start-by-start basis.
“Having that mindset and having that ability to evolve as the game around him gets younger, he gets older. When people think his stuff’s going to decline, he throws harder. When guys start to hit his breaking ball, he comes up with a cutter. He’s always doing something to evolve.’’
Imagine that, a starting pitcher evolving and not just being a robot. Baseball set itself on this path of “Where did all the starters go?’’ years ago when it centered so much attention on pitch counts in the minors that it took away the pitcher’s ability to learn how to get out of difficult situations.
The great ones find a way, and Verlander and Kluber will put all that on display Friday. When starters are around other talented starters they learn.
“Gerrit thinks about things differently than I did,’’ Verlander said of Cole’s impact on him. “Him and I have had good conversations back and forth, just spitballing ideas, about pitching, about mechanics, executing pitches against certain guys and for what reason. To be a fly on the wall in some of those conversations, it’s pretty in-depth.’’
This Cy Young Game 1, as Francona noted, should be fun to watch.