'We didn't panic': Astros' clutch mojo returns
WASHINGTON -- Somewhere in the sky between Houston and Washington, Astros hitters convened on the team’s charter flight Thursday afternoon and talked about approach. In losing the first two games of the World Series to the Nationals, the belief was they tried to do too much and deviated from the
WASHINGTON -- Somewhere in the sky between Houston and Washington, Astros hitters convened on the team’s charter flight Thursday afternoon and talked about approach. In losing the first two games of the World Series to the Nationals, the belief was they tried to do too much and deviated from the methods that made them one of baseball’s most dangerous offenses.
That was especially true in the clutch, where Houston went 3-for-17 with runners in scoring position combined in Games 1 and 2 and left scoring opportunities scattered all over Minute Maid Park. The belief was that it was only going to take one guy to break through with one key hit to get the line moving and the mojo back.
Game | Date | Result | Highlights |
---|---|---|---|
Gm 1 | Oct. 22 | WSH 5, HOU 4 | Watch |
Gm 2 | Oct. 23 | WSH 12, HOU 3 | Watch |
Gm 3 | Oct. 25 | HOU 4, WSH 1 | Watch |
Gm 4 | Oct. 26 | HOU 8, WSH 1 | Watch |
Gm 5 | Oct. 27 | HOU 7, WSH 1 | Watch |
Gm 6 | Oct. 29 | WSH 7, HOU 2 | Watch |
Gm 7 | Oct. 30 | WSH 6, HOU 2 | Watch |
And wouldn’t you guess, it started with a bloop single in the second inning off the bat of outfielder
“I feel like this team’s been doing that the whole season,” catcher
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The Astros struck out only five times, which is their lowest total this postseason.
“I thought our at-bats were good,” Astros manager AJ Hinch said. “I thought some of our outs were really good, I think, in terms of the quality of the at-bat.”
Reddick followed a Correa double in the second by going the other way with a 2-1 pitch from Washington starter Aníbal Sánchez and dropping it into left field for an RBI single. With a 62.1-mph exit velocity, it was the fourth-slowest ball hit in the game, but it might have been the most meaningful for Houston.
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“I think it was a big sigh of relief for us, because we have been dealing with so many hard-hit balls [for outs in Games 1 and 2] and been frustrated by it,” Reddick said. “It was a finally-it-went-our-way moment to get us off our butt, so to speak, and get us moving forward.”
In the third, Brantley ripped an 0-2 fastball back up the middle and off the glove of Sanchez for a single, scoring
“The key was that we stayed confident,” Altuve said. “We didn’t panic. The first two games we didn’t do some things, but we kept believing in us and tonight we went out there and made it happen.”
The Astros’ improved approach was evident in Chirinos, who was 2-for-24 with 12 strikeouts in the postseason before having a pair of hits in Game 3 of the World Series. He was chasing changeups down and swinging at fastballs up. Chirinos wasn’t giving himself a chance in his at-bats.
“I feel like I did tonight,” he said. “My first at-bat against Aníbal, he was trying to go up. I took it and he got behind in the count, and he threw me a fastball down and away and I was able to go the other way. I feel like I put myself in good position to have a good game at the plate tonight.”
Through three games of the Fall Classic -- and really all 14 games in the postseason -- Houston has yet to explode on offense. There’s still another level waiting to be reached. The Astros' better approach on Friday was a step in the right direction. They swung and missed only 10 times in Game 3 after 27 whiffs in Game 1 and 14 in Game 2.
“Tonight we went out there and we passed the baton to the next guy,” Altuve said. “We kept playing and got some big hits tonight -- Michael Brantley, Reddick. Obviously, Robinson with the big homer. We needed all that.”
Brian McTaggart has covered the Astros since 2004, and for MLB.com since 2009. Follow @brianmctaggart on Twitter.