Kershaw Blasted, Braves Blanked, Rangers & Astros Move Closer To Texas Showdown

Rangers’ Youngsters Outplay Orioles’ Youngsters, Take 1-0 Lead

One of my X-factors for the Rangers-Orioles series focused on Baltimore’s youngest players—Adley Rutschman, Gunnar Henderson, and Kyle Bradish. I wondered if that trio with so little MLB experience—and no postseason experience—would fold under the pressure of postseason play.

I should have been writing about the Rangers’ young players.

Evan Carter turned 21 in late August, just before making his major league debut. The Rangers called Carter up in early September when All-Star outfielder Adolis Garcia injured his knee on an attempted leaping grab. Carter played so well, the Rangers kept him on the big league roster. In 23 games, Carter hit .306/.413/.645 and played stellar outfield defense.

Through three career postseason games, Carter has 4 hits—3 doubles and a home run—and 5 walks in 12 plate appearances.

Two of those walks and one of those doubles came in Game 1 against the Orioles on Saturday.

Rangers’ rookie third baseman Josh Jung, 25, hit a home run that made the score 3-1 at the time. It proved to be the winning run for Texas. He also had 5 assists in the field that included two critical double plays.

Rutschman, Henderson, and Bradish didn’t fold under pressure. They were just outplayed by Carter and Jung.

My second X-factor for the series? What kind of Rangers’ bullpen we’d see. At least in Game 1, we saw the efficient and effective bullpen that helped Texas win the Wild Card Series against the Blue Jays. Manager Bruce Bochy had a long track record during the San Francisco Giants’ championship runs of making perfect bullpen moves. Saturday was no different.

Well, almost perfect. Aroldis Chapman looked vulnerable during his appearance in the bottom of the 8th inning. Austin Hayes and Rutschman drew back-to-back walks to start the inning. But Anthony Santander swung at an 0-1 pitch below the strike zone and grounded into a double play, all but ending the Orioles’ threat.

Game 2 is Sunday at 4:07 pm EDT/1:07 PDT on FS1. Jordan Montgomery will start for the Rangers. Rookie Grayson Rodriguez takes the ball for the Orioles.

Astros Turn On Postseason Beast Mode, Beat Twins

I pegged the Twins’ defense—a difference-maker in the Wild Card Series—as an X-factor in their Division Series against the Astros. The Twins did play solid defense in Game 1 in Houston, but the best defense in the world will not stop home runs.

The Astros hit three dingers on Saturday—two by Yordan Alvarez—to power past the Twins. Ageless wonder Justin Verlander pitched 6 dominant innings for Houston.

Once Verlander was out of the game, Minnesota made it close with two home runs of their own—a three-run bomb by Jorge Polanco followed by a Royce Lewis (who else?) solo shot.

Astros closer Ryan Pressly retired the Twins in order in the top of the 9th to seal the win for Houston.

Game 2 is Sunday at 8:03 pm EDT/5:08 pm PDT (FS1). Pablo Lopez takes the mound for the Twins. Framber Valdez starts for the Astros.

Phillies Shutout Braves With Strong Bullpen, Defense

The Phillies and Braves have met two previous times in the postseason. The Phillies won both series. Sure, it’s a small sample size, but it spawned a hype video narrated by Chase Utley. Maybe the Phillies just have the Braves’ number in the postseason?

We all know the Braves were the best team in the regular season. They tied the single-season record for team home runs with 307. They scored 947 runs. The Braves were shutout only twice this season—both on the road. In fact, the Braves haven’t been shutout at Truist Park since August 28, 2021.

Behind starter Ranger Suarez and relievers Jeff Hoffman, Seranthony Dominguez, José Alvarado, rookie Orion Kerkering, Matt Strahm, and closer Craig Kimbrel, the Phillies blanked the Braves 3-0. Bryce Harper (who else?) powered the Phillies’ offense with a walk and a home run.

Trea Turner had the play of the game—a tremendous stop of a ball heading to center field to start an inning-ending double play. The Braves had runners on first and third with one out. A hit would have scored a run and put runners on first and second. Turner shut the door.

I immediately thought of the Joe Panik-Brandon Crawford double play in Game 7 of the 2014 World Series. But then I saw an amazing double highlight on Twitter showing Jimmie Rollins making nearly the same play in 2008 to seal the Phillies’ NL East title.

Game 2 will be played Tuesday at 6:07 pm EDT/3:07 pm PDT (TBS). Zack Wheeler will start for the Phillies. Max Fried, fresh off the injured list, will take the mound for the Braves.

Diamondbacks rout Kershaw, Dodgers

The biggest news out of the first day of Division Series play was Clayton Kershaw’s disastrous start in Game 1 against the Diamondbacks. Kershaw gave up 6 runs on 6 hits and one walk and retired one only batter. He pitched one-third of an inning and walked off the mound to stunned silence from Dodgers fans.

Kershaw battled a shoulder injury most of the second half. But even a less-than-healthy Kershaw pitched fairly effectively after coming off the injured list in early August. He didn’t go deep into games but he held opposing teams to 1 run or less in all but 2 starts.

That was not the case Saturday night. The D’Backs attacked Kershaw from the first pitch and hit the ball hard all over the yard.

The final score was 11-2.

Kershaw’s performance was shocking, but so was the way D’Backs pitching shut down the second-best offense in the National League. Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman looked helpless against starter Merrill Kelly, who’d come into this start with a career 0-11 record against the Dodgers.

Manager Dave Roberts was forced to use his bullpen for 8 2/3 innings. Even with the National League having an off day until Monday, that’s going to force Roberts to shuffle his already tenuous pitching plans.

Game 2 will be played Monday at 9:07 pm EDT/6:07 pm PDT (TBS). Zac Gallen will start for the D’Backs. Bobby Miller will take the ball for the Dodgers.