Gerrit Cole throws a masterful start to lift Astros over Rays
Astros playoff report presented by APG&E: Astros now lead ALDS 2-0 after 3-1 win over Rays
Oct 5, 2019, 11:54 pm
Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images
Gerrit Cole dominates on the mound in ALDS Game 2
After doing so much of the regular season, Gerrit Cole once again played his part in "whatever you can do, I can do better" in the friendly competition between Justin Verlander. Cole's dominant night on the mound, with a couple of runs behind him, lifted the Astros over the Rays to take a 2-0 advantage in the ALDS before the series shifts to Tropicana Field. Here is our recap of the game:
Final Score: Astros 3, Rays 1.
Series: HOU leads 2-0.
Winning Pitcher: Gerrit Cole.
Losing Pitcher: Blake Snell.
Cole and Snell duel early, but Bregman comes out on top
Like Verlander and Glasnow in Game 1, both the Astros and Rays had trouble with the opposing starter through the first few innings in Game 2. Gerrit Cole and Blake Snell finished the first three innings of the game scoreless, with Cole allowing just one hit and Snell three.
Alex Bregman was able to break the scoreless tie in the bottom of the fourth, leading off the inning by winning a seven-pitch battle against Snell with a solo home run to put Houston ahead 1-0. Snell would face one more batter before being pulled after 3.1 innings and starting the night for Tampa Bay's bullpen.
41 HR in the regular season.
First this #postseason. pic.twitter.com/j1OAXKhkW7
— MLB (@MLB) October 6, 2019
Gerrit Cole doing Gerrit Cole things
While Snell had his night come to a close early, Cole was putting together another incredibly dominant outing on the mound. He allowed just one hit over the first four innings before getting the 1-0 lead off of Bregman's home run, then held on to the one-run lead with inning after inning of incredible pitching.
Sorry, how fast? In what inning? pic.twitter.com/Bd0EMD90zc
— MLB (@MLB) October 6, 2019
He would later get another run behind him and came to the mound for the top of the eighth with a 2-0 lead. Cole would get two outs into that inning before two baserunners and his pitch count would prompt A.J. Hinch to make a move to closer Roberto Osuna. When it was all said and done, Cole had finished seven and two-thirds shutout innings with 15 strikeouts, a new franchise record in a postseason game. His final line: 7.2 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 15K.
Osuna makes it stressful, but Houston takes 2-0 series lead
After coming up disappointingly empty after putting runners on first and third with no outs in the fifth inning, the Astros received another chance in the bottom of the seventh. An error put Yuli Gurriel on first to lead off the inning, and then he moved to third on a double by Carlos Correa. After an out, Martin Maldonado came through with an RBI-single blooped into the outfield to extend the lead to 2-0.
With Cole's terrific night coming to an end two outs into the eighth inning, Houston looked to Roberto Osuna to get a four-out save. He got a three-pitch strikeout to end the top of the eighth, erasing the two runners put on by Cole. In the bottom of the eighth, the Astros added one more insurance run on an RBI-single by Carlos Correa, extending the lead to 3-0.
Roberto Osuna then returned in the ninth to finish the save. He would be unsuccessful, loading the bases with no outs after two singles and a walk to start the inning. An RBI-groundout cut the lead to 3-1 and left runners on the corners with one out before Osuna would walk the bases loaded again. That would do it for Osuna, with Will Harris coming in to replace him to try and get the final two outs.
Harris would control the situation well, striking out his first batter then getting a groundout to finish the game. The win put the Astros up 2-0 in the series, needing just one win out of the next three games to advance to the ALCS for the third straight season.
Up Next: Houston and Tampa Bay will have a day off Sunday to travel to St. Petersburg for ALDS Game 3 on Monday. The game will get underway at 12:05 PM Central, and the expected pitching matchup is Zack Greinke (18-5, 2.93 ERA in the regular season) for the Astros going against former-Astro Charlie Morton (16-6, 3.05 ERA in the regular season) for the Rays.
The Astros playoff report is presented by APG&E.
Most Popular
SportsMap Emails
Are Awesome
Listen Live
Jose Altuve asked manager Joe Espada to move him out of the leadoff spot and into the second hole for the Houston Astros.
The reason? He wanted more time to get ready to hit in the bottom of the first inning after coming into the dugout from left field.
Altuve is playing left for the first time in his career after spending his first 14 major league seasons at second base.
“I just need like 10 more seconds,” he said.
The 34-year-old Altuve made the transition to the outfield this season after the trade of Kyle Tucker and the departure of Alex Bregman shook up Houston’s lineup.
Jeremy Peña was in the top spot Monday night against Detroit. Altuve had two hits, including a two-run homer, and three RBIs to help the Astros to an 8-5 win. It was the first time since 2023 he batted anywhere besides leadoff.
“I enjoy playing baseball,” Altuve said. “I love playing, especially with these guys. I like being in the lineup. In the end it doesn’t really matter if I play second or left, if I lead off or not. I just want to be in the lineup and help this team to win.”
Altuve didn’t suggest that Peña take his leadoff spot.
“I just told Joe that maybe he can hit me second some games at some point and he did it today,” Altuve said. “I just need like that little extra time to come from left field, and he decided to put Jeremy (there).”
Peña is hitting .265 with three homers and 11 RBIs. He batted first in Sunday’s 7-3 win over Kansas City — with Altuve getting a day off — and had two hits and three RBIs. He added two more hits and scored twice Monday.
Along with giving him a little extra time to get ready to bat, Altuve thinks the athletic Peña batting leadoff could give a boost to a lineup that has struggled at times this season.
“Jeremy is one of those guys that has been playing really good for our team,” Altuve said. “He’s taking really good at-bats. He’s very explosive and dynamic on the bases, so when he gets on base a lot of things can happen. Maybe I can bunt him over so Yordan (Alvarez) can drive him in.”
Altuve is a nine-time All-Star. The 2017 AL MVP is hitting .282 with four homers and 12 RBIs this season.
Espada said he and Altuve often share different ideas about the team and they had been talking about this possibility for a while before the manager made the move.
“He’s always looking for ways to get everyone involved and he’s playing left field, comes in, maybe give him a little bit more time to get ready between at-bats, just a lot of things that went into this decision," Espada said. "He’s been around, he knows himself better than anyone else here, so hopefully this could create some opportunities for everyone here and we can score some runs.”