|
Cole proved masterful again, striking out 10
over eight stellar innings in a 6-1 win that enabled the Astros
to set a date with the New York Yankees in the AL Championship
Series.
Game 1 of the ALCS is scheduled for Saturday back at Minute Maid
Park, where the Astros improved to 35-8 over their past 43
contests after eliminating the Rays. Houston qualified for its
third consecutive ALCS.
Cole (2-0) limited the Rays to one run on two hits and two
walks, improving to 18-0 with a 1.66 ERA over his past 24 starts
dating back to May 27. The only blemish against him was Eric
Sogard's leadoff homer in the second inning.
Laudatory comments came from every corner celebrating Cole,
whose 25 strikeouts in the division series established a major
league record. Yet before the Astros could fully digest their
series victory over the stubborn Rays, attention shifted to the
Yankees, who battled Houston for seven games in the 2017 ALCS.
"Yeah, the Yankees, obviously are a formidable squad," Cole
said. "The AL East, we all know what that division poses with
the reigning world champions (the Boston Red Sox), and obviously
the Tampa Bay Rays hanging in there.
"They've got a lot of talent, a boatload of talent. It's just
kind of how they're always made. They're very stoic. They grind
out a lot of at-bats. It's going to be a tough matchup."
With the Rays' exceptional relievers having shifted momentum
away from the World Series-favorite Astros, Houston executed a
first-inning ambush of Rays right-hander Tyler Glasnow (0-2)
that negated the Tampa Bay bullpen while providing Cole an early
cushion.
George Springer, Michael Brantley, Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman
reached in succession to open the bottom of the first, with
everyone excluding Springer delivering opposite-field hits.
Altuve roped an RBI single to right-center that scored Springer
from third before Bregman added a double that reached the wall
in right-center and plated Brantley and Altuve.
Yuli Gurriel capped the outburst with an RBI single that scored
Bregman. Houston led 4-0 and matched its combined run output
from losses in Games 3 and 4 in St. Petersburg, Fla.
"No, no, no. He's as tough to face as anybody," Bregman said
when asked if the Astros sussed out some imperceptible advantage
against Glasnow. "I think if you went around and asked everybody
on our team, it was just a team approach today. It was just one
at-bat after another."
Later, after mustering just one hit and a combined two
baserunners against the first six of eight Rays relievers, the
Astros finally broke through with back-to-back home runs from
Brantley and Altuve to open the eighth inning off Rays closer
Emilio Pagan.
Altuve socked his third homer of the series and 11th in his
postseason career, matching the club record held by Springer and
eclipsing the big league mark set by Chase Utley for the most
postseason home runs by a second baseman.
That it took so long for the Astros' league-leading offense to
break through against the Rays' stifling bullpen was a testament
to the effectiveness of the unheralded Tampa Bay relief corps.
"I give those guys a lot of credit coming out of the bullpen
today," Rays manager Kevin Cash said. "Every one of them gave us
a chance to stay within striking distance. The issue is their
guy on the mound was just that much better that we just couldn't
get anything going."
Cole proved greater than the sum of the Rays' parts. The Astros
bet on that formula all along.
"When you have Gerrit Cole on the mound, we win," Astros manager
AJ Hinch said. "We have. We've kind of proven that."
--Field Level Media
[© 2019 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2019 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
 |
|
