6-3, 2-4 stand out with 15 K’s
As scorecard shows, Cole aided greatly by Correa, Maldonado
While Gerrit Cole’s command and control were his best friends during his 15-strikeout performance in the Astros’ 3-1 Game 2 victory in the ALDS on Saturday night, he also benefited from contributions by shortstop Carlos Correa and catcher Martin Maldonado at the plate as well as in the field.
In the field, Correa proclaimed his return from recent injury woes with an acrobatic fielding play for the game’s first out, and Maldonado provided the back half of a strike ’em out/throw ’em out double play in the sixth inning.
At the plate, Correa and Maldonado helped produce a critical run in the seventh inning when the Astros were on the verge of extending what appeared to be an evening of missed opportunities.
For Correa, his first-inning web gem embodied the phrase the Astros generally use whenever his name comes up — “He’s our shortstop” — an obvious but nonetheless telling tribute to the impact he can provide when he’s hale and hearty and can fashion a game in his own image.
“Carlos Correa was born for October,” said third baseman Alex Bregman. “I think we’ve seen that throughout his career. In the postseason, he steps up.
“When he’s not hitting, he’s playing great defense. When he’s at the plate, he’s normally coming through in huge situations. Today was just another example of that.”
Facing a 1-1 count as the game’s leadoff hitter, Rays third baseman Yandy Diaz latched on to a 96.5 mph Cole fastball and sent it 105.2 mph in the other direction toward Correa.
The Astros shortstop went to his right, tracked down Diaz’s grounder a couple of steps into the outfield grass and, while his momentum carried him away from the infield, unleashed a laser that first baseman Yuli Gurriel scooped for the out as Diaz slid headfirst into the bag.
“It feels great to be healthy and to be back with my teammates,” said Correa, who was limited to 75 regular-season games because of a fractured rib and tightness in his lower back. “This has been a grind this year for me, but I want to be out there and to contribute, and I was able to do so today.
“To win championships, you’ve got to pitch and play defense, and then the offense comes in. For me, it’s important to be at my best defensively.”
It was one of the few defensive gems the Astros needed across the first six innings, which were dominated by 11 strikeouts from Cole.
Not until the sixth would they need another critical defensive play in a one-run game, and this time it was courtesy of Maldonado, who in effect has been Cole’s personal catcher since rejoining the Astros on Aug. 1 after a trade deadline deal with the Cubs.
Rays shortstop Willy Adames singled to lead off the sixth, the Rays’ third hit off Cole, and took off for second as Cole delivered a 3-2 pitch to Diaz. Diaz swung for the third strike on a 98.3 mph fastball, and Maldonado’s throw to second baseman Jose Altuve was in plenty of time to get Adames to complete the double play.
Maldonado, who said he expected Adames to be off with the pitch, has on occasion sailed throws into second since returning to Houston and has been working on his mechanics. In this case, the work paid off.
“They’ve been aggressive on going, trying to steal bases. They did that against us early, and I knew they would try to get something going,” Maldonado said.
“I’ve been making a little bit adjustment (on my throwing mechanics). I’ve been working on that quite a bit. That’s my bread and butter.”
Then came the seventh, with the Astros clinging to a 1-0 lead after stranding five baserunners through six innings.
After Gurriel reached on a throwing error by Adames, Correa laced a double to left that sent Gurriel to third. Kyle Tucker grounded out with both runners holding, and Maldonado faced Rays reliever Emilio Pagan with the Tampa Bay infield in to cut down a run at the plate.
The catcher fouled off a bunt attempt before he laced a Pagan cutter to left field that dropped in front of Austin Meadows. Gurriel had to wait to ensure that the ball would drop but beat the throw home for the game’s second run.
“After I got two strikes, I knew the infield was in,” Maldonado said. “I was trying to get something so that I could make contact. I didn’t want to strike out in that situation.”
Maldonado also played a role in one of the Astros’ earlier missed opportunities. In the fifth inning, after Tucker drew a leadoff walk from Rays reliever Diego Castillo, Maldonado lined a base hit down the third-base line that could have trickled into the corner but caromed off the ballboy’s stool and bounced toward Meadows.
George Springer struck out, and Altuve grounded into a double play to end the opportunity, but Correa and Maldonado helped rectify that in the seventh.
Correa provided an insurance run in the eighth with a two-out base hit to score Bregman, and Maldonado continued his run of success as Cole’s full-time catcher over the last two months. Now the Astros are in position to sweep the series with a Game 3 win today at Tropicana Field.
“Martin was as locked in as I’ve ever seen him — driving in runs, running the bases. I don’t know how many leverage blocks he had in the last inning, maybe the last couple innings,” Cole said.
“I threw 118 (pitches), (Roberto) Osuna threw 30, Will (Harris) threw somewhere around 10. That’s 150 pitches, and he’s dropping to his knees without any room for error after three hours. To be that locked in is pretty special. He had one of his best nights back there, and it’s a big reason why we won the game.”