Astros win Game 1
Behind three home runs from Jose Altuve, the young but very good Houston Astros took a 1-0 series lead over the Boston Red Sox on Thursday.
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 major 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 the AL Division Series.
Buoyed by chants of “MVP” 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 best-of-five 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.
“I told him 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.
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 got him in 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. Game 2 is Friday, with
Dallas Keuchel starting for the Astros against Drew Pomeranz.
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 100loss seasons from 201113, and is perhaps the main reason this team ran away with the AL West title this year.
Altuve hit .346 this year, his fourth straight 200-hit season. He had 24 home runs this year — this was his third career multihomer game, and the first time he’d hit three all at once.
The crowd of 43,402, which included Hall of Famers Nolan Ryan, Jeff Bagwell and Craig Biggio, waved bright orange towels as Altuve trotted around the bases.
Indians shutout Yanks to claim Game 1
Trevor Bauer chopped slugger Aaron Judge and New York’s other big bats down to size, and Jay Bruce drove in three runs as the Cleveland Indians began chasing their first World Series title in 69 years with a 4-0 win over the Yankees on the Thursday night in the opener of the AL Division Series.
Bauer struck out Judge three times, twice getting the MVP candidate looking. He allowed just two hits in 6 2-3 innings before manager Terry Francona turned to baseball’s best bullpen, using Andrew Miller and closer Cody Allen to finish the three-hitter.
Allen came in with two on and two outs in the eighth to face Judge, who struck out for the fourth time and angrily snatched at his bat frustration.
Bruce connected for a two-run homer in the fourth off Sonny Gray and added a sacrifice fly in the fifth as the Indians began a journey to try and end the majors’ longest Series title drought.
Corey Kluber, an 18-game winner during the regular season, will start for the Indians in Game 2 on Friday against CC Sabathia.