The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Cash: Rays got ‘Verlandered’
HOUSTON — Asked what went wrong for his Tampa Bay Rays, manager Kevin Cash invented a word.
“We got Verlandered,” Cash said. Justin Verlander looked every bit the October ace, Jose Altuve polished his postseason resume and the Houston Astros kept rolling, beating the Rays 62 Friday to open their AL Division Series.
The Astros, who won a franchiserecord 107 games for the best record in the majors, began their quest for a second World Series title in three years against a Rays team that downed Oakland 51 in the wildcard game this week.
Verlander kept up his dominant run this year when he posted an MLBmost 21 wins and fanned 300, allowing just a soft single in seven shutout innings. He struck out eight and improved to 80 in 12 career ALDS appearances — he’s 147 overall in postseason play.
He cracked up when told Cash used his performance to turn his name into a verb.
“It’s a pretty great compliment,” Verlander said. “I don’t know what else to say, other than that.”
Tampa Bay got its only hit off Verlander when Brandon Lowe singled to start the fifth. Verlander ended his day by striking out the side in the seventh, pounding his fist into his glove as he walked off the mound after fanning Lowe.
Manager AJ Hinch was asked about Verlander’s knack for getting stronger late in games.
“He’s got an incredible instinct for the moment,” he said. “He leaves some gas in his gas tank at the end of his outings … like a good sprinter, like at the finish line, he’s going to win. He’s going to win the race at the end of his outings.”
Rays starter Tyler Glasnow had given up just three singles when he walked Josh Reddick on four pitches to begin the fifth. He struck out George Springer, but Altuve then tagged him for a tworun homer, lining a fastball into the left field seats.
“I just left that pitch up and it was a tworun home run,” Glasnow said. “Hindsight, I would go back and change some things, but can’t do anything about it now.”
The sellout crowd of 43,360, which included Astros Hall of Famers Nolan Ryan and Craig Biggio, erupted into deafening cheers and fans twirled bright orange towels as Altuve trotted around the bases, a huge grin plastered on his face.
BRAVES 3, CARDINALS 0
ATLANTA — Adding another chapter to his remarkable turnaround season, Mike Foltynewicz threw seven crisp innings before pinchhitter Adam Duvall hit a tworun homer that carried the Braves past the St. Louis Cardinals, evening the NL Division Series at one game apiece.
Foltynewicz, who spent a good chunk of his summer in TripleA after a miserable start, has been a different pitcher since returning from the minors. He went 61 with a 2.65 ERA over his last 10 starts — a dominating run that carried right into the postseason.
The bestoffive series now shifts to St. Louis, where Mike Soroka gets the ball for the Braves in Game 3 on Sunday against Adam Wainwright.
Going against St. Louis ace Jack Flaherty, who had one of the great second halves in baseball history, Foltynewicz allowed only three hits, didn’t walk anyone and struck out seven during an 83pitch outing that kept the Cardinals from mounting any semblance of offense. They only got one runner as far as second base against him — and that was in the second when Yadier Molina singled and Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies extended the inning by misplaying Paul DeJong’s grounder for an error.
No problem for Foltynewicz. He fanned Harrison Bader to end the threat.
After Kolten Wong hit into a double play to end the seventh, Duvall emerged from the dugout to hit for Foltynewicz in the bottom half. With a runner aboard and two outs, Duvall was greeted by a smattering of boos from the SunTrust Park crowd that clearly wanted Foltynewicz to go at least one more inning — especially after the Braves bullpen imploded the night before in a Game 1 loss.
The heckles turned to cheers when Duvall drove a 32 pitch from Flaherty into the centerfield seats, giving the Braves a bit of breathing room. Duvall spent nearly the entire season at TripleA, where he set a franchise record with 32 homers, so it wouldn’t be a stretch to say this as much a victory for the Gwinnett Stripers as the Braves.