The Astros, in one of the most incredible and improbable victories in franchise history, came back from a 7-3 deficit to beat the Seattle Mariners in game one of the ALDS 8-7 on a walkoff home run by Yordan Alvarez with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning. It was the first time a team has hit a walkoff homer when down to its last out since Kirk Gibson’s famous shot off Dennis Eckersley in the 1988 World Series.
It was a stunning, come-from-behind win that felt like a loss right up until it didn’t, against a team that had done similar things over the last half of the season. Then, Yordan happened.
WINNERS
Jeremy Peña
The rookie shortstop struggled at the plate early looking rushed and swinging at breaking pitches off the plate. But, his stellar defense remained on display including a nifty double play and an acrobatic catch on a caught stealing. Still, he was at bat in the ninth with two outs and a man on when he smacked a slider on a line into center field allowing Alvarez to get to the plate as the winning run. Peña showed poise when it mattered most and continued to look terrific on defense. All in all, a great outing for the rookie phenom.
Tie: Julio Rodriguez and Kyle Tucker robbing Julio Rodriguez.
Make no mistake, Rodriguez is a star, even as a rookie. He went 2-4 including a double, triple and a walk with a pair of RBIs and three runs scored. He was everything the Mariners could have hoped for. Late in the game, with a chance to put the Mariners up three, he crushed a fly ball to deep right center. Once again, the Astros defense came through with Kyle Tucker robbing Rodriguez of a homer right at the right field fence. Just one more winning play in a game full of them.
Playoff Yuli Gurriel
The first baseman who won a batting title last year was not the same guy in 2022. He struggled through an awful season at the plate despite being among the league leaders in doubles. His killer glove work at first kept him in the lineup, but there were questions about whether or not he could still barrel up a baseball. Tuesday night, he silenced some of the critics with a 3-4 appearance including a solo home run.
Yordan Alvarez
When Alvarez stepped into the box against lefty starter-turned-reliever for one night, Robbie Ray, it was the culmination of a huge comeback with the game in his hands. He did not disappoint hitting a 116 mph rocket 438 feet into the right field upper deck, thrilling the sellout crowd, which included his parents, to end the game. Alvarez was 3-5 with five RBIs that included the three-run walkoff homer and a two-run double. He also flashed the leather and the arm in left field. He didn’t single handedly win the game, but it was pretty damn close.
LOSERS
Astros comeback failures.
The Astros were 2-47 this season when trailing after eight innings. They were 28th in the league in runs scored in the ninth inning. Yet, down two in game one of the ALDS, they found a way to get a pair on for Alvarez, which included rookie David Hensley working a count and being hit by a pitch, and Peña getting a line drive single on a two-strike count with two outs. When the Astros hit the playoff, the are just different.
Pitching Christian Javier in relief.
For all the frustrations over odd decisions made by manager Dusty Baker throughout the season, the Astros wound up being one of baseball’s best teams. Baker, in the end, pulled a lot of the right strings. But, on Tuesday, he made another odd choice when he brought in Christian Javier to relieve Bryan Abreu after one-and-two-thirds innings. Javier, arguably, could be a starter in game three. He has clearly been one of the Astros top three pitchers this season, but Baker opted for him in relief in game one. Javier gave up a solo home run and may have put Baker in a pinch if he needs another starter late in this series.
Justin Verlander
Verlander is going to win the AL Cy Young Award. He deserves it. But he was a mess on Tuesday night. His control was erratic at best and he wound up giving up hard contact way too many times. Because he couldn’t locate his fastball, he allowed too many players to get on base and the Mariners capitalized. It’s no wonder he was one of the first people at home plate to greet Alvarez when he rounded the bases in the ninth.
Scott Servais late game management.
Robbie Ray? Really? We thought bringing Javier in was crazy, but Servais opted to go lefty-on-lefty against Alvarez with his number three starter despite Alvarez being really good against left-handed pitchers all year. Fortunately for Servais, Ray only threw two pitches, so he should still be available to start or do a piggy-back start later in the series if needed. Unfortunately for him, the second pitch he threw turned out to be the game winner. It cannot be great for this confidence.
Jeff Balke covers the Astros and Rockets weekly for the Houston Press and co-hosts the Bleav in Astros podcast with former third baseman and current Astros broadcaster Geoff Blum. Follow him on Twitter.
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2022.
