Pitching plans
Zack Greinke to start Game 4 on regular rest.
NEW YORK — The Astros anticipated a washout. Before it became reality, they tinkered with their starting pitching possibilities behind the scenes, holding a plan for two potential outcomes. A bullpen game was in order if Wednesday’s outing were played with no hindrance. Rookie Jose Urquidy, he of nine major league appearances, was to factor heavily.
Instead, rain saturated New York, postponing Game 4 of the American League Championship Series and handing Houston manager A.J. Hinch freedom to make a simple and expected choice.
“As soon as we can use our best pitchers, the better for us,” Hinch said on a teleconference. “It was an easy decision.”
Two wins away from an American League pennant, Hinch will hand the baseball to two of his most trusted starting pitchers on a full complement of rest. Zack Greinke will start Game 4 of the ALCS on Thursday at 7:08 p.m. at Yankee Stadium. Justin Verlander will follow in Game 5 on Friday at 6:08 p.m.
Configuring the rotation this way was “very easy,” Hinch said. He reiterated numerous times Wednesday that “we only care about the next game, and that’s what we’re focusing on.”
Wednesday’s rainout also gave Yankees manager Aaron Boone the opening to pitch Masahiro Tanaka, who handcuffed the Astros for six innings in Game 1, on normal rest in Game 4. James Paxton will start Game 5 for New York.
The postponement of Game 4 eliminated a prescheduled day off Friday. Games 6 and 7, if necessary, would be played Saturday (7:08 p.m.) and Sunday (6:38 p.m.) at Minute Maid Park.
A series extended to seven games would require the teams to play four times in four days, putting an obvious strain on both bullpens. That the Yankees rely so heavily on their relievers and get so little from their starters would seem to favor the Astros, who get to deploy two fully rested, top-ofthe-rotation pitchers during the next two nights.
If the Astros can’t close out the ALCS in New York, Hinch’s Game 6 decision will likely be influenced by which team holds the series advantage. Gerrit Cole, who pitched seven scoreless innings in Tuesday’s 4-1 win in Game 3, would not be on full rest until a potential Game 7.
Were Cole to pitch in a Game 6, he would take the mound on three days’ rest for the first time in his major league career. Verlander established the precedent in Game 4 of the AL Division Series against Tampa Bay. He collected only 11 outs, and the Astros lost 4-1, putting them on the precipice of elimination.
Verlander, like Cole, had never started a major league game on three days’ rest.
“We’re here to win — and win as fast as we can,” Hinch said. “If it takes all four games, if our bullpen gets used a lot and our pitching gets used a lot, then that’s what it’s going to take to get to the World Series.”
Greinke was scheduled to pitch Thursday, regardless of weather or where the Astros stood in the series. Keeping such a routine-oriented, meticulous man like Verlander on four days’ rest is a boon.
Starting in Yankee Stadium will return Greinke to the sight of his season’s most seismic day. He threw five innings of two-run ball against the Yankees on July 31, dominance stopped only by — coincidentally — a weather delay.
The Astros and Arizona Diamondbacks finalized their blockbuster trade while he was on the field. Greinke was informed of the move during a rain shower.
Greinke earned 10 regular-season starts with Houston, going 8-1 with a 3.02 ERA. His October pedigree is more checkered. In his last six playoff starts, he’s 1-4 with a 5.91 ERA.
Greinke has allowed five home runs in two playoff outings with the Astros. Houston lost both of his starts — Game 3 against the Tampa Bay Rays and Game 1 against the Yankees.
His start against New York at Minute Maid Park on Saturday was, by definition, quality — six innings of three-run ball with six strikeouts. Two home runs on poorly located four-seam fastballs were his biggest mistakes. Command of his changeup against the Rays was wretched. Two of the postseason franchise-record three home runs he yielded at Tropicana Field came against the changeup.
“For him, execution is always key,” Hinch said. “He’s one of the best at it when he gets locked in with his mechanics and timing and delivery. When he makes his pitches, he’s really, really difficult to hit. And you can see that just based on how good he is for as long as he’s been good.”
Verlander has had loads of postseason success against the Yankees. Since the Astros acquired him in 2017, Verlander has thrown 222⁄3 playoff innings against New York, yielding only three earned runs while striking out 28. He pitched 62⁄3 innings of two-run ball in Game 2, which Houston won 3-2 in 11 innings.
While Hinch is focused solely on the AL Championship Series, Wednesday’s rainout could be of extra benefit should the Astros win the AL pennant. With Verlander now starting Friday, his availability on normal rest for Wednesday’s Game 2 of the World Series is ensured. The Game 1 starter against the NL champion Washington Nationals would likely be Cole or Greinke, depending on the duration of the ALCS.