‘It’s all what you dream of’: Astros Chas McCormick, Jeremy Peña make Yankees pay in ALCS Game 1
HOUSTON – The Houston Astros smashed the Yordan Rules before the New York Yankees had any chance to enact them.
Facing the hitter who singlehandedly undid the Seattle Mariners in the previous playoff round, the Yankees made it painfully clear they were not going to let Yordan Alvarez beat them in Game 1 of the American League Championship Series.
So they threw him four wide ones his first time at the plate. Lured him into a flyout to lead off the third inning. And then, with the tying run at second and a relief pitcher coming in, Yankees manager Aaron Boone signaled four fingers for an intentional walk before Alvarez could even begin the walk from the on-deck circle.
But quieting Alvarez hardly means short-circuiting the Astros.
With a startling boom-boom-boom covering the sixth and seventh innings, the Astros received a go-ahead home run from No. 6 hitter Yuli Gurriel, the first postseason home run ever from No. 8 hitter Chas McCormick and then the final bit of insurance, a booming home run that banged off the wall behind the left field Crawford Boxes in the seventh inning from rookie shortstop Jeremy Peña.
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It added up to a 4-2 victory and command of this ALCS for the Astros.
It also made for some very discouraging math for Boone and the Yankees.
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Why’s that? Well, leadoff man Jose Altuve – whose 23 home runs are second in playoff history – was hitless in three at-bats, sending his 2022 playoff drought to 0 for 19. Alvarez put just one ball in play. Alex Bregman was 0 for 3 and outfielder Kyle Tucker hitless in four at-bats – including a bases-loaded double play that made the Alvarez intentional pass pay off.