ALTUVE HITS THREE HRS; INDIANS WIN
ALDS:
Jose Altuve plays powerful role in Houston’s 8-2 rout of Boston; Trevor Bauer helps Cleveland beat Yanks 4-0.
HOUSTON» Jose Altuve had just arrived in the Astros’ dugout after launching his third home run of the game when George Springer grabbed his right biceps and examined it, as if searching for an explanation for his teammate’s extraordinary pop.
“He makes sure he stays on top of his gym routine, whatever it is,” Springer said. “The dude is just a joke.”
The American League batting champion put on an unprecedented show of power Thursday as Houston roughed up Chris Sale and the Boston Red Sox 8-2 in Game 1 of their AL division series.
Buoyed by chants of “M-V-P” in each trip to the plate, the 5-foot-6 Altuve hit solo homers in the first and fifth innings off Sale. He connected again in the seventh off reliever Austin Maddox to give Houston a quick boost in the bestof-five playoff series.
“As soon as I cross the white line, I feel the same size as everyone else,” Altuve said.
It was just the 10th time a player hit three homers in a postseason game, and first since Pablo Sandoval for the Giants in the 2012 World Series opener against Detroit. Babe Ruth did it twice.
“I told Jose the last time I’ve seen three home runs in a game was Pablo Sandoval, and I gave up two of them — so I’m glad there’s somebody new that’s done it,” winning pitcher Justin Verlander said.
Altuve became the first Astros player to hit three homers in one game since 2007, when Carlos Lee did it in the regular season. He seemed as surprised as anyone else that he was now in a category with the Sultan of Swat, Reggie Jackson and Albert Pujols.
“I hit one and I was like: ‘Wow,’ ” he said. “And the second one is like: ‘Wow, what’s going on here?’ ”
And his thoughts after the third homer?
“I got to wake up,” he said, flashing a huge grin.
After he finished talking to Springer following his third shot, Altuve’s teammates goaded him into exiting the dugout for a curtain call. And as he tipped his hat to the crowd, one fan near the dugout held a sign that proclaimed in blue block letters: “That Kid Can Hit.”
Verlander pitched six effective innings and improved to 6-0 since Houston acquired him in a late trade with Detroit. He is 5-0 with a 2.24 ERA in nine career starts in the division series.
Sale, the major-league strikeout leader, was tagged for seven runs in five-plus innings of his postseason debut.
Among the shortest players in the majors, Altuve couldn’t be a bigger leader for the Astros. He’s one of the few players remaining who languished through a rebuilding process that led to three straight 100-loss seasons from 2011-13, and is perhaps the main reason this team ran away with the AL West title this year.
“First off, how good is Jose Altuve?” Houston manager A.J. Hinch asked. “It’s incredible to watch him step up and be every bit the star that we needed today for sure. It’s hard to describe in different ways.”
Altuve hit .346 this year, his fourth consecutive 200-hit season. He had 24 home runs this year — this was his third career multihomer game, and the first time he had hit three all at once.
Quite a comeback from his only previous postseason — in 2015, he batted just .154 (4-for-26) without an extra-base hit.
Sale never got into a rhythm and was chased after walking Josh Reddick with no outs in the sixth. The left-hander was tagged for nine hits and matched a season high for most runs allowed.
“Anytime he mislocated, particularly in the middle of the plate, they made him pay for it . ... And then his slider was hit and miss today,” Boston manager John Farrell said. “Some were flat, some had good depth, but the inconsistency to the location pitch to pitch is a difference in this one against a team that makes you pay.”
After fanning 308 in the regular season, Sale struck out six batters Thursday. But he allowed three homers and three doubles, marking just the second time in his career that he’s given up six extrabase hits.
Footnote. The Red Sox have taken designated hitter Eduardo Nuñez off their playoff roster because of a knee injury and replaced him with outfielder Chris Young.
Nuñez hurt himself running to first base and had to be carried from the field in the first inning.