Tellez homer, throw spark Brewers over Braves
MILWAUKEE » Rowdy Tellez spoiled Charlie Morton’s gem with a two-run homer in the seventh inning and threw out a runner at home plate, leading the Milwaukee Brewers over the Atlanta Braves 2-1 Friday in the opener of their NL Division Series.
Corbin Burnes, Adrian Houser and Josh Hader combined on a four-hitter that gave Milwaukee the early lead in this best-offive series. Game 2 is Saturday in Milwaukee.
Former Brewer Orlando Arcia grounded to second with runners on the corners to end the game. That came after Brewers catcher Omar Narváez — who combined with first baseman Tellez on a key first-inning double play — blocked Hader’s 1-2 pitch in the dirt to keep Freddie Freeman at third base.
Neither team produced much offense until the Brewers finally broke through in the seventh.
After Morton (0-1) hit Avisaíl García with a 1-2 pitch to start the inning, Tellez ripped another 1-2 offering from Morton over the center-field wall to break a scoreless tie. The hefty, bearded slugger had gone 1 of 13 against the Braves this season until delivering that 411-foot drive.
Tellez was activated from the injured list Saturday after missing about three weeks with a right patella strain.
Atlanta’s Joc Pederson lofted a pinch-hit homer off Houser (1-0) with two outs in the eighth.
Morton’s 85th and final pitch to Tellez was among the few mistakes he made all day. He struck out nine, walked one and hit a batter to continue his recent history of exceptional postseason performances.
Burnes was every bit as good in his first career postseason start.
The NL Cy Young Award contender opened the game with two straight walks and threw 40 pitches in the first
two innings but settled down from there. The righthander struck out six and gave up two hits and three walks in six shutout innings, throwing 91 pitches.
American League
RED SOX 14, RAYS 6 » J.D. Martinez hit a tiebreaking, three-run homer in his return to the lineup and Boston backed Tanner Houck’s clutch relief effort with a
franchise postseason record five home runs, beating Tampa Bay to even their AL Division Series at a game each.
Kiké Hernandez had five of Boston’s 20 hits, including a homer and three doubles, becoming Boston’s first player with four extra-base hits in a postseason game.
Xander Bogaerts, Alex Verdugo and Rafael Devers also connected for the Red Sox, who rallied for a blowout win after ace Chris Sale allowed a first-inning grand slam to Jordan Luplow and was pulled following just three outs.
Hernández’s leadoff homer in the fifth off Collin McHugh tied it before Martinez went deep against Matt Wisler (0-1) four batters later.
Houck (1-0) kept Boston in the game after Sale was rocked for five runs in the first inning. The rookie right-hander came out of the bullpen to start the second inning and allowed one run and two hits over five frames, retiring his first 11 batters before yielding a two-out single to Wander Franco in the fifth.
ASTROS 9, WHITE SOX 4 » Carlos Correa and the Houston Astros are relentless at the plate and in the field.
That’s why they are so tough to beat in the playoffs.
Correa hit a two-run double during Houston’s fiverun seventh inning, and the Astros beat the Chicago White Sox for a 2-0 lead in their AL Division Series.
Kyle Tucker homered and drove in three runs as the Astros moved within one win of their fifth straight appearance in the AL Championship Series. Alex Bregman had two hits and scored twice, and Jose Altuve made a couple of big plays.
Game 3 of the best-offive series is Sunday night in Chicago.
The Astros grabbed the lead for good on Yordan Alvarez’s tiebreaking RBI single off Aaron Bummer (0-1) with one out in the seventh. Craig Kimbrel then took over and retired Yuli Gurriel before Correa’s drive to right sailed just past a sprinting Leury García.
Correa screamed and gestured to the crowd to yell with him as he reached second. The star shortstop is eligible for free agency after this season, and it’s going to be quite costly for the AL West champion Astros to keep him.